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BOSTON
JOURNAL OF NATURAL HISTORY,
CONTAINING
PAPERS AND COMMUNICATIONS
READ TO THE
BOSTON SOCIETY OF NATURAL HISTORY,
1843 — 44.
PTJBLISHID BY THEIR DIRECTION.
VOL. IV.
NEW YORK
BOTANICAL
QARDEM
CHARLES C. LITTLE AND JAMES BROWN.
MDCCCXLIV.
BOSTON':
Plil.NTKD BV K11EK.MAN AND BOLLES,
WASHtNGTON STKKET.
^:1^ ... .V
iNEV/ '-'ORK
BOTAi.ICAIj
GARDEN
CONTENTS.
Page.
Art. I. Dissection of two adult Dromedaries^ a Male and a Female.
By J. B. S. Jacksox, M. D., 1
II. Descriptions of the Fishes of the Ohio River and its Tributa-
ries. By Jared p. KiRTLAND, M. D., (^continued from
iii. 4S2), 16
III. Observations on the Genus Scalops, (Shreio Moles,) with
Descriptions of the Species found in North America. By
J. Bachmax, D- D., - 26
IV. 071 the Occiirreyice of the Phosphate of Uranium in the Tour-
maline Locality at Chesterfield. By J. E. Teschemacher, 35
v. Descriptions of tiveyity -four Species of the Shells of Neio
England. By J. W. Mighels, M. D., and Prof. C B.
Ada.ms, 37
VI. Descriptions and Figures of the Araneides of the United
States. By X. M. Hentz, 54
VII. Descriptions of two neiv Species of Fishes. 5?/ D. Humphreys
Storer, 31. D., 58
VIII. On a new Species of Raffleria, fro7n Manilla, By J. E.
Teschemacher, .----•--63
IX. Remarks upon Coral Formations in the Pacific ; with Sug-
gestions as to the Causes of their Absence in the same
Parallels of Latitude, on the Coast of South America.
By Joseph P. Couthguy, ...... QQ
X. Niagara Falls. Their physical Changes, and the Geology
and Topography of the surrounding Country. By James
Hall, 106
XI. Note to the Editors respecting the fossil Bones from Oregon.
By Henry C. Perkins, M. D., 134
XII. Reynarks upon Coral Formations in the Pacific, &fC. By J. P.
CoTjTHOUY, (continued from p. 105), . . - - 137
XIII. Descriptions of some of the Species of naked, air-breathing
Mollusca, inhabiting the United States. By Amos Bin.ney, 163
XIV. Additional Descriptions of. and Observatioyis on, the Fishes
of Massachusetts. By D. Humphreys Storer, M. D., - 175
XV. An Inquiry into the distinctive Characteristics of the aborigi-
nal Race of America. By Samuel G. Morton, 3L D-, • 190
XVI. Descriptions and Figures of the Araneides of the United
States. By N. M. Hentz, (continued from p. 57), - 223
^O XVII. Descriptions of the Fishes of Lake Erie, the Ohio River,
CT'.i and their Tributaries. By J. P. Kirtland, 31- D., (con-
' tinued from p. 26), - - - - - - -231
•"<::t^ XVIII. Description of a Species of Helix, newly observed in the
C<i Un ted States. By Amos Binney, 3L D., - - - 241
^_- XIX. Observations on the Habits of the Python Nataleyisis. By
^^ Thomas Savage, M. D , 242
^^ XX. Observations on the Characters ayid Habits of the ocellated
^** "Turkey, (3leleagris ocellata, Cuv) By Samuel Cabot,
M. D., 246
CO*
IV.
Contents.
XXI. On the Existence of siliceous (?) Spiculcein the exterior Rays
of Actinia ; and Memoranda concerning the siliceous
Animalcules of Boston. 5i/ Prof. J. W. Bailey, - 252
XXII. Enumeration of the Fishes of Brookhaven, Long Island, with
Remarks upon the Species observed- By William O.
Ayres, --- 255
XXIII. Enumeration of the Fishes of Brookhaven, S^c. By William
O. Ayres, (continued from p. 264), ... - 265
XXIV. Descriptions of four Species of Fishes from Brookhaven,
L. I., all of which are believed to be tiew. By Williaji;
0. Ayres, 293
XXV, Descriptions of the Fishes of the Ohio River and its Tribu-
taries. By Jared p. Kirtland, M. D., (continued from
p. 240), 303
XXVI. Catalogue of the marine, fluviatile, and terrestrial Shells of
the State of Maine and adjacent Ocean. By J. W.
MiGHELS, M. D., 308
XXVII. Descriptions of six Species of Shells, regarded as new. By
J. W. MiGHELs, M. D., 345
XXVIII. Monograph of the Species of Pupa found in the United
States, with Figures. By Augustus A. Gould, M. D.
(continued from iii. 404), ...... 350
XXIX. Descriptions of two undescribed Species of North American
Helices. By Amos Binney, .--.-. 360
XXX. Observations on the external Characters and Habits of the Tro-
glodytes JVisrer, Geof. By Thomas S. Savage, M. D. ;
and on its Organization. By Jeffries Wyman, M. D., - 362
XXXI. Descriptions and Figures of the Araneides of the United
States. By N. M. Hentz, (continued from p. 231), - 376
XXXII. Description of an African Beetle, allied to Scarabaus Poly-
phemus, tvith Remarks upon sotne other Insects of the same
Group. By T. W. Harris, M. D., .... 397
XXXIII. On the Importance of Habit as a Guide to Accuracy in sys-
tematical Arrangement, illustrated in the Instance of the
Sylvia petechia of Wilsoti. and all subsequent Writers.
By Thomas McCulloch, Jr., ------ 406
XXXIV. On the Anatomy of Tebennophorus Carolinensis. By Jef-
fries Wyman, M. D., 410
XXXV. On the anatomical Structure of Glandina truncata of Say.
By Jeffries Wyman, M. D., ------ 416
XXXVI. Beaumontite and Lincolnite identical with Heulandite. By
Francis Alger, 422
XXXVII. Probable Influence of Icebergs upon Drift. By J. L.Hayes, 426
JLXJLV III. Descriptions of Land Shells from the Province of Tavoy, in
British Burmah. By Augustus A. Gould, M. D., - 452
XXXIX. Descriptions and Habits of some of the Birds of Yucatan. By
Samuel Cabot, Jr. M. D., 460
XL. Enumeration of the recent freshwater Mollusca ivhich are com-
mon to North America ayid Europe ; with Observations on
Species and their Distribution. By S. S. Haldeman, - 468
XLI. Descriptions and Notices of some of the Land Shells of Cuba.
By Augustus A. Gould, M. D., ----- 485
XLII. Miner alogical Notices. By J. E. Teschemacher, - - 498
XLIIl. Analysis of Pink Scapolite, and of Cerium Ochre, from Bol-
ton^ Mass. By Charles T. Jackson, - - - - 504
BOSTON
JOURNAL OF NATURAL HISTORY,
COIJTAINING
PAPERS AND COMMUNICATIONS,
BEAD BEFORE THE
Boston cSocCetg of Katttral J|(fltorfi,
AND PUBLISHED BY THEIR DIRECTION.
VOL. IV.— NO. 1.
PtTBLISHISTG COMMITTEE.
GEORGE B. EMERSON,
THADDEUS W. HARRIS,
AUGUSTUS A. GOULD,
D. HUMPHREYS STORER,
CHARLES K, DILLAWAY.
BOSTON:
CHARLES C. LITTLE AND JAMES BROWN.
1842.
CONTENTS OF VOL. IV. NO. I.
Page.
Art. I. — Dissection of two adult Dromedaries ; A Male and a Fe-
male. By J. B. S. Jackaon, M. D 1
Art. II. — Descriptions of the Fishes of the Ohio River and its Trib-
utaries. By Jared P. Kirtland, M. D. 16
Art. hi. — Observations on the Genus Scalops, (Shrew Moles,) with
Descriptions of the Species found in North America. By J. Bach-
man, D. D,, Charleston, S. C 26
Art. IV. — On the Occurrence of the Phosphate of Uranium in the
Tourmaline Locality at Chesterfield. By J. E. Teschemacher. 35
Art. V. — Descriptions of Twenty four Species of the Shells of New
England. By J. W. Mighels, M. D., of Portland, Me., and Prof C
B. Adams, of Middlebury College, Vt 37
Art. VI. — Descriptions and Figures of the Araneides of the United
States. By Nicholas Marcellus Hentz. 54
Art. VII. — Description of two new Species of Fishes. By D. Hum-
phreys Storer, M. D. 58
Art. VIII. — On a new Species of Rafflesia, from Manilla. By J. E.
Teschemacher. 63
Art. IX. — Remarks upon Coral Formations in the Pacific ; with Sug-
gestions as to the Causes of their Absence in the same Parallels of
Latitude on the Coast of South America. By Joseph P. Couthouy, 66
Art. X. — Niagara Falls — their Physical Changes, and the Geology
and Topography of the Surrounding Country. By James Hall. 106
Art. XI. — Note to the Editors respecting Fossil Bones from Oregon.
By Henry C. Perkins, M. D. . 134
NEW VCRX
BOTANiCAC
BOSTON
JOURNAL OF NATURAL HISTORY.
VoL.IV. JANUARY, 1842. No. 1.
Art. L— DISSECTIOxN OF TWO ADULT DROMEDARIES; A
MALE AND A FEMALE. By J. B. S. Jackson, M. D.
The animals which are the subjects of this paper, died in
this city within a day or two of each other, having been
well, so far as was known, till within a few days before
death. They were about six years old, and weighed, by
estimate of their keepers, about 850 lbs. each. Most of the
organs were carefully examined, but some, though not over-
looked, were not particularly noted, and have therefore not
been recorded.
The Hump on the back of the female consisted principal-
ly of dense fat ; fifteen inches long, twelve wide, and five
and a half thick. Masses of fat, of a very regular and oval
form, were found in the soles of the feet, apparently intend-
ed to give elasticity to the step.
Tongue of the male, sixteen inches long and two and one
half wide at the tip. Anteriorly thin, and covered by a
rough cuticle. Thickened portion, posteriorly, seven inches
long and two wide ; on each side of it a row of five or six
glands, from two to seven lines in diameter and remarkably
developed.
The Soft Palate of the female was seven inches in length.
To its under surface was attached that remarkable organ,
which has been often described by naturalists, but of which,
so far as I am aware, there has been no anatomical descrip-
1
Jackson's Dissection of
•'v.
V
tion given, except that*of''^ro.f. Sayi,^of Pisa, (Edinburgh
Phil. Journal, Vol. XII.) ^Ir consistQji of a duplicature of
mucous membrane hanging in loose folds, extremely soft and
flaccid to the feel, and held together by a very lax cellular
tissue ; the surface had rather a dark red color. On cut-
ting it through, there was no appearance of a cavity, neith-
er of glands nor muscular fibres. It descended into the
cavity of the mouth three and a half inches, and arose by a
broad base, of a triangular form, having its apex posteriorly,
and measuring two inches transversely in front ; it commen-
ced one and a half inches from the anterior extremity of
the soft palate and did not reach its posterior or free edge
by three and a half inches. Above it, and as if forming a
part of the soft palate, is a firm and highly vascular tissue.
Anterior to it there is, beneath the mucous membrane, a
great number of glands, of a very regular, flattened oval
form, of the size of large apple seeds, and situated close to-
gether, as they are often found about the lower extremity of
the oesophagus of birds. On each side of it, and occupying
about the seat of the tonsils in man, are numerous glands of
a rounded form and about the size of peas ; from the large
and open orifices of the ducts of many of these there project-
ed, sometimes one or two and sometimes several light colored
fibres, which looked like coarse hairs or bristles, about two
or three lines in length, and easily withdrawn, not seeming
to be attached within the cavity of the follicles ; what these
were was by no means apparent. Between this organ and
the posterior edge of the soft palate there were no glands to
be seen, except a few towards the sides; the upper surface
of the palate, however, within the posterior nares was cover-
ed with them, though they were not larger than pins' heads.
Prof. Savi, who made his observations upon the large col-
lection of dromedaries near Pisa, remarked, as naturalists
generally have, upon the rattling sound which the palatine
organ produces in the throat when the animal is excited,
especially during the rutting season, and that during the
act of copulation it is even protruded externally from the
mouth, in the form of a deep red, vascular, membranous bag
a Male and a Female Dromedary. 3
or bladder, which seems to be inflated. It may be protruded
forward by the air forced upon it from behind, or it may
perhaps be susceptible of a sort of erection, but it cannot be
properly inflated, as it contains no cavity. Prof. S. considers
this organ as the uvula, and labors strenuously to main-
tain the point ; but he seems to have been led to this
view of the subject from having fallen into the great error
of supposing that the uvula is found in all the other mam-
malia as well as in man. Cuvier (Anat. Comp. III. 283,)
and Mr. Lawrence, in a note to his edition of Blumenbach,
state that it is found only in man and in the simise ; there
certainly was no appearance of it in the present case, and
the peculiar organ in question, as already stated, did not
reach within three and a half inches of the posterior edge of
the soft palate.
In the male, the palatine organ was rather larger, but
otherwise the same as in the female ; the arrangement and
development of the glands were also the same, with the same
appearance as of hairs projecting from the orifices of some
of the ducts. As to the size of the palatine organ, Prof S.
makes it about four times as long as it was in the present
individuals, though these had died in the month of March,
which is just the rutting season, the time when the organ is
more frequently protruded, seems to be more excited, and
would be at least as much developed as at any other time.
The Stomach of the Female consisted of three cavities.
The first, or the paunch, was of a rounded form, about two
or two and a half feet in diameter, and nearly filled with
food, which was unchanged and for the most part dryish,
though in the depending parts there was a little water.
The inner surface was formed by a white, thin, dense,
wrinkled cutis, without papillae, and lined by a delicate cu-
ticle. The muscular coat was strongly developed, the fibres
generally extending from the cardiac orifice to the opposite
extremity of the organ, so as to force up the contents towards
the oesophagus in the process of rumination, the cud being
evidently returned into the mouth from this cavity, and not
from the second, as in the bullock ; there was also a thin
4 JacksoTi's Dissection of
layer passing in an opposite direction, besides some irregular
fibres which would give a rotatory movement to the contents.
The most efficient muscular power, however, was a large,
thick band in the posterior parietes ; it was eighteen inches
in length, arose near the cardiac orifice, around which it
communicated with the small band which went to the sec-
ond cavity, and was at this part six inches broad ; at the
thickest part, midway, it was an inch and a quarter in width,
and at the further extremity it became broader, thinner,
and was gradually lost in the parietes.
The cells in the first cavity, which serve the animal as a
reservoir for water, were arranged in two rows. The first
extended fifteen inches from the orifice of the second cavity,
along the posterior parietes, towards the left side. Ten trans-
verse and parallel septa were sent off at a right angle from
the strong muscular band, varying in length from five to
nine inches, and in depth from three-fourths to more than
two inches, but becoming less and less marked towards the
left side, where they gradually disappear. These septa are
intersected by others which are thinner, for the most part
quite regular, and situated about one inch apart, thus forming
the cells which, by estimate, would hold generally from one
to four ounces ; at the left extremity, where these last septa
are most deficient, the cells are very large, one of them
measuring five and a half by two inches, and being capable
of holding not far from three or four gills. The first named
transverse septa are from two to four lines thick on their
free edge, in which are seen well developed muscular fibres
arising directly from the large band in the posterior parie-
tes of the organ, though less strongly marked than they are
represented by Sir E. Home (Comp. Anat. pi. 25) ; his fig-
ure, however, was teiken from the two-humped camel, and
not from the dromedary ; the cells, also, are surrounded by a
few irregular fibres, which would tend to expel their contents.
In order to see the fibres in any part of this cavity, the
cutis had to be dissected away. — The second row of cells
commenced about opposite the middle of the first row on the
right side, and extended thirtyfour inches round towards the
a Male and a Female Dromedary. 5
front of the organ. There were nine transverse septa, from
three to five inches in length, quite regular at the anterior
extremity, but much less so posteriorly ; the largest were two
and a half inches apart. Midway they formed large con-
tinuous cells, capable of holding eight ounces or more ; ante-
riorly, they were intersected by other septa, forming very reg-
uleir cells which would have held from two to four ounces,
but posteriorly the cells were very irregular, holding about
two ounces.
The second cavity of the stomach, which must serve
merely as a receptacle for water, had a crescentic form, the
small curvature measuring seven inches, and the large fifteen.
It communicated very freely with the first ca /it y at the dis-
tance of four and one half inches from the oesophagus : the
opening into the third cavity is smaller, and immediately
below this it formed a cul-de-sac which was two inches deep ;
midway, it measured transversely on the inner surface, nine
and a half inches. In the small curvature there was a smooth
space, four inches wide at the left extremity, but diminishing
to one inch at the right. Along this space there ran a strong-
ly marked muscular band ; it arose on the left side of the
termination of the oesophagus, measured there one inch wide,
but gradually diminished and terminated at the opening of
the second cavity into the third. Thus the opening of
the third cavity is drawn up towards that of the oesophagus
to receive the cud that has been chewed, and which is
prevented from falling again into the first cavity by the
united action of the large muscular band in the first cavity,
and the small one in the second. The cells of this cavity
were much more numerous, and very much smaller than
those of the first, with which they were almost directly
continuous ; on an average, they would have held from
three to four drams, but the largest, which were situated
at the left extremity, were from two to four times as large.
There were thirteen transverse septa, counting them on the
large curvature, but some of these bifurcated and some united
towEirds their extremities. These were intersected by two
others, four or five inches long and one fourth of an inch wide,
6 Jackson's Dissection of
which arose from the left extremity of the cavity, ran paral-
lel along the large cmvature and were gradually lost ; they
were also intersected by very numerous, short, but not con-
tinuous septa Avhich formed the cells. This cavity, Hke the
first, was lined by cutis, without papillae ; cuticle not raised.
Muscular coat about two lines thick ; fibres mostly longi-
tudinal, thouorh some were transverse : the same structure
was also seen about the cells and in the septa.
The third cavity, or true organ of digestion, was for the
most part thin and membranous, of an elongated form, but
somewhat incurvated, and measured three and a half feet in
length. Being cut open, it measured three inches across
at the left extremity, fourteen inches at the largest part or
about the junction of the first and second thirds, eight inches
where it became contracted, or at the distance of six inches
from the pylorus, after which it dilated to twelve inches, and
then contracted again at the pylorus to four and a half inch-
es. This cavity at the left extremity Vv^as of about an uni-
form size throughout the first five inches, but there was not
the slightest appearance of a separate cavity as generally
described, and as is strongly represented by Home in the
Bactrian camel ; otherwise, the form of this third cavity
corresponded perfectly with his figure (pi. 24.) He re-
marks upon the intermediate cavity as so small that it might
be overlooked were it not for the distinctness of its orifices ;
but this last was not found in either of the individuals under
description. He remarks, also, upon the absence of septa and
of the cuticle which generally characterize the third cavity
of ruminants, and which absence, in the present case, seemed
to be a strong additional reason for denying the existence of
an intermediate cavity. The mucous membrane general-
ly, was smooth, soft, extremely thin, and thrown into loose
longitudinal folds, of which there were counted about forty,
commencing towards the left extremity, where the dilata-
tion began, and terminating within six inches of the py-
lorus; in it were some small mucous follicles. Upon the
inner surface of that portion of the left extremity which
is generally described as an additional cavity were seen the
a Male and a Female Dromedary. 7
faint remains of cells wich passed imperceptibly into the
plicae ; Sir E. Home remarks upon " a faint appearance of
a honey-combed structure, so slight as to require a close in-
spection to ascertain it." In the last six inches of the py-
loric portion, the structure of the lining membrane was en-
tirely changed. The greater part had the soft villous ap-
pearance of a mucous coat, but was much thickened. The
remainder, situated in the large curvature and to the extent
of about six inches square, was about one line in thick-
ness, and very peculiar in structure, consisting of fine, up-
right, parallel fibres, easily separated from each other and from
the subjacent parts ; the surface was smoother than that of
the surrounding mucous coat, though thrown into very
thick and strongly marked rugae. Just at the pylorus was
the glandular body, as it is described in the camel and
bullock by Home ; it was about one inch broad and about
one half an inch thick, from which place it extended back-
wards along the small curvature, and was gradually lost in
the parietes ; it was covered by mucous membrane and con-
sisted of a soft, w^iite tissue, without any glandular ap-
pearance. The pylorus was well marked, though not very
prominent. The muscular coat of this cavity was quite
thick, especially at the rugous part, the fibres being trans-
verse.
The Stomach of the Male corresponded mainly with the
above description. In the first cavity, the cells on the left
side extended fourteen inches ; there were ten transverse
septa, four and a half to nine inches long, three-fourths of an
inch to two inches apart, and intersected, though not regu-
larly, by short septa ; three or four of the cells would pro-
bably have held eight or ten ounces. The cells on the
right side commenced about opposite the middle of the
large muscular band and were thirtynine inches in extent ;
thirteen transverse septa ; cells midway about three inches
wide and very shallow, but at each extremity much smaller.
The muscular band was twenty two inches long, and mid-
way one half inch thick. Small curvature of the second
cavity eight and one half inches, and the large ten and one
8 Jackson's Dissection of
half; inner surface midway and transversely ten and one half
inches ; twelve transverse septa, more regular than in the fe-
male, the two large ones which intersected them, running
about half the length of the cavity ; cells would have held
from half an ounce to an ounce ; small muscular band seven-
teen inches long, one inch wide, and about two lines thick ;
muscular coat generally thick, and the fibres transverse, being
in the female mostly longitudinal. Third cavity forty in-
ches long. Measured transversely at the left extremity
three inches, diminishing afterwards to two and three-
fourths, but without any appearance of there being an
intermediate cavity ; at the largest part it was fourteen in-
ches, at the contracted part nine, at the largest part after
it again dilated nineteen, and at the pylorus four inches.
There were about forty or fifty longitudinal plicae ; beyond
these the lining membrane was about one half a line thick,
firm and rough on the surface, and there was seen the pe-
culiar rugous membrane that was described in the female, ex-
cept that the color here was cineritious. The gland at the
pylorus, as it has been called, was two inches long, one inch
wide, and half an inch thick.
Small Intestine of the male eighty five feet long, of the
female eighty and a half Just below the pylorus, and to
the extent of about one foot, was a remarkable dilatation,
the change from this to the smaller part below being very
abrupt ; this is well represented in Sir E. Home's figure
of the Bactrian camel, (pi. 24;) he describes it, however,
as a dilatation between the pylorus and the duodenum, and
not as a dilatation of the intestine itself. Being cut open
throughout, the male intestine measured at the dilated por-
tion sixteen inches ; below this, varying from two and a half
to four inches, and at the coecal valve five and a half inches ;
mucous membrane quite thin and smooth in the upper third,
but became more and more thick and villous towards the
coecum ; muscular coat quite thin and the fibres transverse.
Aggregate glands very strongly marked and peculiar in
structure. In the upper quarter of the female intestine were
six patches, from two to eight lines in diameter, circular,
a Male and a Female Dromedary. §
ft
well defined, but not at all raised. In the male, just below
the dilatation of the duodenum, were numerous and similar
patches, from two to three hues in diameter, and arranged in
parallel rows. In all of these the openings of the follicles
were large. Within the last fifteen inches of the intestine,
in the female, were also six patches, situated in a straight
line, and opposite the mesentery, generally from half an inch
to one inch in diameter, of a circular form, and well de-
fined ; the smallest were two or three lines only, som^ were
oval, and one measured one and a quarter inches by half
an inch. These appeared, at first sight, like decided ulcer-
ations, being surrounded for the most part by a sharp and
raised edge, which, beginning almost imperceptibly, became
gradually wider, until at last it was expanded into a proper
membrane, partially overhanging the surface of the patch,
but not connected with it except at its circumference. The
width of this membrane varied in the different patches, the
greatest being six lines ; it was soft, smooth, rather thick,
apparently organized and continuous with the surrounding
mucous membrane. The surface itself of these patches
seemed healthy, the follicles of which they were composed
being quite distinct, and as much so where they were cov-
ered by the membrane as where they were not. In the
male, the patches at the lower end of the intestine had a sim-
ilar appearance, but were less carefully noted. The small
patches in the upper part of neither the male nor female
intestine showed any trace of the peculiar membrane above
described.
Large Intestine sixty two and a half feet long in the male,
and fifty and a half in the female ; length of caecum in each,
twenty inches. Being cut open throughout, the dimensions
and general structure in each was about the same. In the
male the measurements transversely were as follows : in the
coecum from eight to ten inches ; for the first eight feet
(from the coecal valve,) six to nine inches ; it then dimin-
ished to two or three inches and so continued for the next
eighteen or twenty feet, the convolutions at this part being
closely connected and embedded in fat ; it afterwards increas-
2
10 Jackson's Dissection of
ed again to four and a half inches. Mucous membrane at
first quite thin and smooth,, but thrown into longitudinal folds
after the intestine became smaller. Muscular coat thick ;
fibres mostly transverse, but throughout there were some lon-
gitudinal.
Aggregate glands. In the coecum and ascending colon
were numerous patches resembling in structure those found
in the small intestine. In the female there were seven
about the coecal valve, from two to five lines in diameter, of
a dark grey color, partially covered by the peculiar mem-
brane above described, and having at first sight the appear-
ance of burrowing, cicatrizing ulcers; in the coecum were
four others, about three lines in diameter and resembling the
above. In the first part of the colon were numerous patches
without the membrane ; generally from two to three lines in
diameter, but one, which was nearly circular, was over an
inch, and another, of an oval form, measured six b}^ eight
lines. The patches in the male were much less numerous ;
in the colon were five, from two to four lines in diameter,
having the peculiar membrane, but being much less grey
than in the female.
The Liver was an irregular, flattened organ, consisting
mainly of one large right lobe, from the anterior part of
which there extended a long, thin, narrow lobe towards the
left side. In the male, the transverse diameter of the two
lobes, taken together, was twentysix and a half inches ; right
lobe twentyone inches antero-posteriorly, and three and one half
inches thick ; left lobe twelve inches long, from five and one
half to nine inches wide, and one inch thick ; the female was
rather smaller. On the surface were numerous irregular fissures
and small imperfect lobes. The organ had a bluish ash-color,
was quite dense though flaccid, and seemed made up of large
and very distinct granulations. Near the posterior edge of the
right lobe in the male were two morbid productions, each about
one inch in diameter, of a regular, rounded form, and well de-
fined, the surrounding substance being quite liealthy ; one
was apparently a tuberculous mass, white, opaque, and curdy ;
the other was an hydatid, consisting of a firm external cyst,
a Male and a Female Dromedary. 11
within which was a second, quite distinct from the first, very
delicate, villous on the inner surface and filled with serum.
Gall-bladder wanting. In the female the lensth of the
duct external to the liver, was three and one half inches.
Opening into the intestine eleven inches from the pylorus,
without a valve, and very little obhque ; being cut open, it
measured transversely, to a small extent at this part, eight
lines, but just after receiving the pancreatic duct, it was con-
tracted to two. In the male it measured transversely, with-
out being cut open, three lines before and four lines after re-
ceiving the pancreatic duct.
The Pancreas consisted of small, flattened lobules, of a
dull pink color, loosely connected and intermixed with a great
abundance of fat. It was twelve inches long in the male,
eighteen in the female, and for the most part from three
fourths to one and a half inches wide, there being a second
lobe arising from near the head of the first. The duct, in
the female, measured two lines across in the body of the
organ, when cut open, and terminated in the hepatic duct,
two inches from the opening of this last into the intestine.
The Spleen was a thin, flattened organ, of a crescentic
form, the convexity being towards the abdomen ; it adhered
to a very small extent to the stomach, and extended into the
left iliac fossa ; color dark red, and texture coarse. In the fe-
male it was twentytwo and a half inches long, from four to
five inches wide, and three-fourths of an inch thick.
The Kidneys were very regulsir in their form, somewhat
rounded, and measured seven inches long, from three and a
half to five inches wide, and about three inches thick. Tu-
bular portion single, and terminated in an uniform, concave
surface, opposite to the centre of which was the opening
of the ureter.
Bladder of the female about the size of a common orange,
and empty ; mucous membrane somewhat rugous ; muscular
coat thin. — Urethra three and two-thirds inches in length ;
transversely, one inch at neck of bladder, one and a half inches
midway, and seven lines at opening in vagina. Well marked,
dense, longitudinal rugas on whole length of inner surface,
■"^S»;
12 Jackson's Dissection of
with intermediate, oblique lines, somewhat like the arbor vitae
in the human cervix uteri. Muscular coat became more and
more thick towards opening into vagina, where at last it
measured from two to three lines.
Penis twenty inches in length, and for the most part about
as large as the fore-finger, though near the pubes much larger.
Towards the free extremity it gradually diminished in size,
tapering almost to a point, and in a very remarkable manner ;
the last seven lines were bent to a right angle with the
body of the organ, and somewhat twisted, having the dense
feel of cartilage, and measuring at the very extremity but two
lines in diameter. The urethra terminated just at or beneath
the angle formed by this last portion, and was still further
concealed by a firni, sharp point, two lines in length, which
projected forwards from one side of its orifice. The lining
membrane of this canal was dense, and about one-half a line
thick : some spongy tissue externally about midway ; no
muscular fibres seen. Corpora cavernosa formed by an abun-
dant, coarse, cellulo-fibrous network, without a septum : the
investing fibrous membrane extremely thick and dense, meas-
uring from one to one and a half lines. Besides some smaller
muscles, a short, thick pair arose from the pubes to be inserted
into the penis near its origin, and a long, slender, and very
beautiful pair ran nearly the whole length of the organ, along
its under surface, connected with the sphincter ani at one ex-
tremity, and lost in the integuments at the other. The
prepuce was five inches long, and formed a large, thick mass
of flesh, consisting of cellular substance intermixed with
some r^uscular fibres ; fraenum distinct.
Vasa Deferentia within the pelvis at first tortuous, but for
the last four or five inches straight ; rather more than one
line in diameter at fii'st, the canal being a mere pin hole.
Towards their termination the diameter increases to three
lines, and being cut open, the cavity measures about three
lines transversely ; inner surface smooth and polished, show-
ing the openings of numerous minute follicles. Terminated
at last in the urethra, on each side of the verumontanum.
No note made of the testicles.
a Male and a Female Dromedary. 13
VesiculcB seminales wanting.
Membranous portion of the urethra six and one-fourth
inches long ; transversely, on the inner surface, one inch at
neck of bladder, one and seven-eighths inches at verumon-
tanum and five lines only at the commencement of the
penis. Yerumontanum two and one-quarter inches from the
neck of the bladder and not very prominent ; numerous
fine, dense rugae diverged ofi" from it, amongst which were con-
cealed the openings of ducts ; there were, also, longitudinal
rugae, more marked and extending off from it along the me-
dian line anteriorly and posteriorly. Spongy tissue external
to the mucous coat, and about one line thick. Muscular coat
very strongly developed, measuring one-half an inch at the
thickest part ; the fibres were transverse and met upon that
surface of the canal which was towards the rectum, in a thick
mass of condensed cellular membrane or tendon about three-
fourths of an inch wide.
The Prostate gland consisted of a single, broad, thick, and
very regular lobe, of a somewhat triangular form, the apex
being directed towards the urethra, measuring two and three-
fourths inches transversely, and two inches in the opposite
direction. The texture was close, whitish and homoge-
neous ; filled with an opaque, creamy fluid, the ducts termi-
nating in many openings on each side of the verumontanum.
According to Cuvier, (Anat. Comp., 1st ed.. Vol. V., pp. 43
and 47,) this gland in the ruminants is always double, and has
but a single excretory duct ; he also remarks on the large size
of the central cavity in the camel.
Cowpers glands, situated just behind the bulbo-cavernosus
muscle, were remarkably distinct. They were of a very reg-
ular, oval form, one inch long and one-half an inch at the
widest part, of a light red color, slightly granular in structure,
and directed obliquely forwards towairds the median line.
The ducts were large, filled with a starchy secretion, and
terminated at the bottom of a cul-de-sac, which was five
lines in depth and formed by the inner membrane of the
urethra. Each of these glands, separately, was surrounded
by a strongly developed expulsor muscle, which was from
14 Jackson's Dissection of
one-fourth to one-third of an inch thick at the free extrem-
ity ; towards the urethra it became much thinner, and had
on its external surface a very thin fascia, giving to the
whole, before being cut open, a striking resemblance to the
gizzard of a bird ; this same structure I have lately met
with in a ram from Africa, and it is said to be found in
the ruminants generally.
Vagina ten and one-fourth inches in length from the open-
ing of the urethra ; transversely, on the inner surface, three
and one-fourth inches at the meatus, six and three-fourths
inches midway, and five and one-fourth inches at the upper ex-
tremity. Lining membrane thick, dense and polished ; lon-
gitudinal rugae towards the meatus, but they become very
fine and irregular higher up. Muscular coat distinct through-
out, though for the most part very thin ; fibres longitudinal ;
more developed towards the outlet, and measured there from
two to three lines in thickness.
The Uterus, being cut open, measured from its commence-
ment to the bifurcation internally two and one-half inches,
and to the same externally five and one-half inches ; trans-
versely, on the inner surface, four inches at commencement,
and three and one-eighth inches at bifurcation. The left horn,
cut open, was five and one-fourth inches long, two and seven-
eighths inches transversely near its commencement, but after-
wards becomes smaller. Parietes varied from one and one-
half to three lines in thickness. Upon the inner surface of
the uterus were five or six irregular, transverse folds, which
gradually became less marked from below upwards, the last
half inch being quite smooth. Inner surface of the left horn
somewhat rugous towards the free extremity, but smooth
towards the uterus ; muscular coat again well marked, but
became thinner towards the extremity^ Left Fallopian tube
six inches long and rather smaller than the human ; projected
two lines into the cavity of the uterus in the form of a con-
ical papilla ; the other extremity extremely tortuous and ter-
minated in an expansion of peritoneum, which almost com-
pletely invested the ovary.
The Left ovary ^ one and one-half inches long by one inch
a Male and a Female Dromedary. 15
wide, was apparently diseased ; about two-thirds of it occu-
pied by a cyst filled with a watery mucus, and lined by a
proper villous membrane ; in the remaining portion was a dark
grey cyst.
In each of the Broad Ligaments were distinct, but scat-
tered and irregular, transverse muscular fibres.
The Heart was about as larse as in the horse, and had the
same conical form. Auricles of a regular, rounded form, and
equal to about two and one-half or three inches square ; ap-
pendices not strongly marked ; muscular substance in the left
from two to three lines thick, but in the right it was thinner ;
fossa ovalis deep. In the female, the left ventricle was nine
inches long and the right seven and one-half, measuring on
the outside ; the left was ten lines thick at the upper extrem-
ity, then diminished to eight, increased again to twelve, and
at the apex was but two, without the fat, of which there was
some at that part ; the right was from two to four, averaging
about three ; inner surface of the left for the most part smooth.
Mitral valve divided into two distinct portions, and measured
along its adherent edge eight inches ; the tricuspid eight and
one-third. Pulmonary artery six inches transversely on the
inner surface, just above the valves, and one and one-half
lines in thickness ; ascending aorta four and one-half inches
and three lines thick. From the arch of the aorta there
arose two vessels, so near to each other as almost to have a
common origin ; one of these was the left subclavian ; the
other was the common trunk of the right subclavism and the
two carotids. The above measurements were taken from
the female ; the heart of the male was rather larger.
The Trachea of the male had seventyone rings, ranging
from five to nine lines in width, and expanded posteriorly, so
as to overlap each other ; also overlapped so as to form more
than a complete circle, except at the lower extremity. Trans-
verse diameter inferiorly one and one-half inch, the antero-
posterior being rather less ; superiorly the flattening was lat-
eral. On the right side a large bronchus was given oil just
above the proper bifurcation. Muscular coat very strongly
developed, the fibres measuring one and one-fourth Jnch in
16 Fishes of the Ohio
length. Towards the upper part of the trachea, on the right
side, was a dark red, glandular looking body, of a regular
form, three and one-half inches long by two inches wide ;
probably one lobe of the thyroid gland .
The Lungs consisted of a single lobe on each side, without
any trace of division, but sending a prolongation upwards
from the apex. The left, in the male, measured twentyseven
inches along its outer surface ; greatest width ten inches, and
thickness two and one-fourth inches. Cells and lobules about
as large as in man. These organs, in both subjects, contained
very numerous diseased masses, from one-half an inch to two
inches in diameter, apparently a chronic affection, and consist-
ing of a deposit of very soft lymph with a mixture of pus,
the surrounding structure being quite healthy. The bronchial
and some of the cervical glands were similarly affected. The
inner surface of the trachea, also, was diseased at its upper
extremity, and on the anterior face, to the extent of two
inches by one and one-half inch, being thickened, rough and
opaque, but not properly ulcerated.
Art. II,— descriptions OF THE FISHES OF THE OHIO RIVER
AND ITS TRIBUTARIES. By Jared P. Kirki-and, M. D.
(Continued from Vol. III., page 482.)
Lepisosteus. Lacep.
L. oxyurus. Raf. The Ohio Gar-Fish.
Lepisosteus oxyurus. Raf. Ichthyol. Ohiensie. p. 74.
«' " Kirtland. Report on Zoology of Ohio. p. 190.
Lepisosteus Huronensis. Richardson. Fauna Boreali-Amer. p. 237.
Plate I. Fig. 1. -
Head more than one-fourth of the total length ; jaws eleven-
seventeenths of the total length of the head ; forehead flat-
tened between the eyes ; base of the head less in circum-
ference than any other section of the body anterior to the
dorsal fin ; sub-quadrangular ; jaws narrow, elongated, slight-
and its Tributaries. 17
ly narrowed towards the tip ; upper jaw longer, terminating in
an oblong knob. A series of unequal teeth are placed in
clusters along the margin of each jaw. Eyes behind the
angle of the mouth.
Body small, regularly fusiform, transversely flattened ante-
rior to the dorsal fin ; scales hard, corneous and arranged in
oblique rows.
Dorsal Jin situated nearer the base of the tail than the
anal fin.
Caudal Jin oblong, oblique, upper and lower edge ob-
scurely serrated.
Anal Jill larger and longer than the dorsal.
Pectoral Jin ovate and short.
Length. The specimen before me is twentytwo inches j
I have seen them five feet in length.
Color. Back and head brown or umber-colored, sides yel-
low, and belly white.
Habitat. Lake Erie, Ohio river, and many of their trib-
utaries.
D. 7 ,• C. 12 ; A. 6 ; P. 10 rays.
Observations. This species is readily distinguished from
the Duck-bill and Alligator- Gars, by the great length of the
jaws. It maybe seen, apparently sleeping, on the surface, and
gently carried round on an eddy for an hour at a time. Before
our streams were interrupted by the construction of mill-dams,
it was common in most of the permanent rivulets in Ohio,
but it is now becoming scarce. As an article of food it is not
much esteemed, and is not often eaten.
It is not a little surprising that this species should be intro-
duced by Richardson into his " Fauna Boreali- Americana," as
being previously unknown, with the name of '' L. Huron-
ensiSj^^ when it had been so well described by Rafinesque six-
teen years before. Cuvier was acquainted with Rafinesque 's
publication, as his occasional references to it prove, and still,
when a prepared specimen of this fish was sent to him by
Richardson, he called it " Esox osseus, Lin. Lepisosteus ros-
trdtuSy Nobis." M. Agassiz, however, considering it a distinct
species from E. osseus, requested Mr. John E. Gray, the dis-
3
18 Fishes of the Ohio
tinguished curator of the British Museum, to draw up a mi-
nute description for him. Mr. Gray must have been unac-
quainted with the '' Ichthyologia Ohiensis," else he would
never have remarked of the species referred to, '' It also differs
from all the other known species of the genus in being spot-
ted."
L. ferox. Raf. The Alligator Gar-fish.
Lepisdsteus ferox. Raf. Ichthyo!. Ohien. p. 75.
" " Kirtland. Rep. on Zool. of Ohio, p. 196.
Plate I. Fig. 2.
Head one fourth of the total length of the fish, broad and
flat on its upper surface ; skin rugose ; jaws nearly equal, not
half the length of the head, short, oval and obtuse, armed
with numerous strong and prominent teeth, of various sizes
and lengths ; the palatine arch armed in a similar manner.
The upper jaw expands into a knob, beneath its extremity.
Eye situated behind the angle of the mouth.
Body fusiform, cylindrical, and flattened on the back, cov-
ered with large bony scales, which are imbricate, and arranged
in oblique series ; each scale is sculptured on the external
surface.
Dorsal fin more posterior than the anal, and its tip reaches
beyond the commencement of the caudal fin at its inferior
edge. The anterior ray serrated before.
Caudal fin oblique, serrated on its superior and inferior
edges. Several of the rays in this fin, and in some of the
other fins, are compounded at the middle of their lengths.
Anal fin serrated on its anterior edge, and attains with its
tip the commencement of the base of the caudal fin.
Ventral fill horizontal ; its anterior ray serrated.
Pectoral fin ovate, situated beneath the posterior edge of
the operculum.
Color yellowish brown, in the prepared specimens.
Length from four to six feet.
Habitat. Ohio river, very rare.
D. 8 ; 0. 11 ; A. 8 or 9 ; V. 6 ; P. 15 rays.
and its Tributaries. 19
Observations. This fish is an inhabitant of the Mississippi,
and occasionally strays up into its tributaries, the Illinois, the
Ohio, and perhaps some others. I have never met with a
recent specimen, but find the skins of two, prepared in the
Western Museum of Cincinnati ; one was stufi'ed, the other
dried in an extended form. Mr. Dorfeuille, the former pro-
prietor, informs me that one of them was taken some distance
up the river, towards Pittsburg. It is five feet and eight
inches in length, and twentyfive inches in circumference,
and is so well prepared that, though somewhat decayed, it is
believed the drawing taken from it, and accompanying this
description, affords a tolerable representation of the recent fish.
I am under great obligations to Mr. Bartlett, of the Museum,
for permission to use his specimen.
Mr. Silsbee, a member of my medical class, has also pre-
sented me with the bony scales of one taken about four years
since, by some fishermen, with a seine, at the mouth of Mill
Creek, a mile below the city of Cincinnati. It must have
been still longer than those in the Museum, judging from the
size of the scales.
Both my figure and description disagree in many points
with the description of Mr. Rafinesque, but are essentially
correct in reference to the specimens from which they were
taken. And it should be recollected that he made out his
description from a sketch and a jaw in possession of Mr.
Clifi'ord.
Rafinesque says, that in the Mississippi it attains to the
length of eight to twelve feet, and is a match for an alligator.
It is truly a formidable fish, — the shark of fresh water. Its
bony scales and head must be almost impenetrable, and im-
pervious as the mail of the alligator ; and its formidable teeth
and bony jaws, as well as its superior agility, must render it a
powerful competitor ; though I should doubt its ability to
destroy a full grown alligator.
The shortness of the jaws and head, the sculptured surface
of the scales, and the great size and general contour of the
body, will readily distinguish it from the common or the duck-
bill Gar-fish.
20 Fishes of the Ohio
L. platostomus. Raf. The Duck-bill Gar-fish.
Lepisdsteus 2fl(itdstomus. Raf. Ichth. Ohien. p. 72.
»' ** Kirtland. Rep. on Zool. of Ohio. p. 196.
Plate I. Fig. 3.
Head hardly one fourth of the total length of the fish, flat-
tened above the angles of the mouth, broader behind the eyes.
Upper jaw the longer, equal to the remainder of the head ;
expanding on the under side of the tip into an elastic knob,
and gradually widening from thence to the junction with the
skull ; its surface rough and deeply furrowed with a curved
sulcation extending from behind the nostril to the head, above
the eyes, on each side. Lower jaiv wider at the base than
the upper, but narrower at the tip ; their margins furnished
with numerous sharp and prominent teeth. Tongue asper-
ous, bi-lobed at its tip. Throat lax and pendulous beneath.
Operculum 3.nd pre-operculum bony and compressed. Nostrils
near the extremity of the upper, and anterior to the tip of the
lower jaw.
Body cylindric, flattened above ; back somewhat elevated ;
scales corneous, and arranged in oblique series.
Dorsal Jin sub-oval, posterior to the anal.
Caudal fi7i oblong-oval, the base oblique ; upper and lower
rays serrate.
Anal fin similar to the dorsal, in form and size.
Ventral fin ovate, its rays cartilaginous, anterior to the
middle of the body.
Pectoral fin ovate-falcate.
Color. Head and back dusky, and umber ; sides yellow-
ish ; abdomen white; iris golden yellow. Dorsal, caudal,
and anal fins maculate. A series of obscure, circular spots is
situated on the medial line behind the anal fin.
Length. The specimen I have before me is twentysix
inches ; others, it is said, have attained the length of four or
five feet.
D. 8 ; C. 12 ; A. 9 ; V. 6 ; P. 10 rays.
Observations. I have had the good fortune to obtain a sol-
and its Tributaries. 21
itary specimen in the Cincinnati market, but did not learn
where it was taken. Rafinesque speaks of the species being
common in the western waters. This might have been true
in earher times, but at this date, it is so rare here that I have
found one fisherman only, who professes to know it. The
shorter, wider, and flattened jaws, distinguish it from the
Common- Gar ^ — and the longer and tapering jaws from the
Alligator- Gar.
Fig. a. The entire fish.
Fig. b. The upper surface of the head and upper-jaw.
PoLYODON. Lacepede.
P. folium. Lacep. The Spoon-bill Sturgeon. Paddle-fish.
Pohjodon feuille. Lacepede. Griffith's Cuvier, Vol. X. p. 591.
Folyodon foUum. Wilson. Article" Ichthyology," in Encjclopaedia Bri-
tannica, seventh edition, p. 230.
" " Rafinesque, Ichthy. Ohien. p. 82.
" " Mitchiil and Hildreth. Silliman's Journal, Vol. XII.
p. 362, and figure.
Spatularia reticulata. Shaw. General Zoology, Vol. V. p. 362, et fig.
PI. II. Fig. 1.
Head regularly conic, extended into a spatulate snout, on a
line nearly continuous with the back. Snout flat, its edges
thin and compressed, its centre furnished with a firm and
thick cartilaginous rib, extending the whole length, but grad-
ually diminishing in size from the junction with the head to
the tip of the spatula. The surfaces marked with irregular
hexagonal reticulations. Two parallel, cartilaginous nerves
extend from the base of the skull to the termination of the
snout, running through the centre of the upper surface. They
appear to be formed by numerous diverging and concentric
rays.
The Head is somewhat gibbous at its union with the body,
from thence it is declivous to the first third of the length of the
snout. Operculum invested with a fleshy membrane, which
extends as far as the abdominal fin. In the dry specimen
the operculum is radiate, which is not apparent when recent.
2% Pishes of the Ohio
The Head, including the operculum and snout, is longer than
one half the total length of the fish, and the snout exceeds
the united length of the head and operculum. Nostrils dou-
ble, situated immediately above and before the eyes. Spira-
cles behind and above the eyes, on a line with the nostrils
and edge of the snout. Jaws expansive, thin, flexible, carti-
laginous, acutely margined and minutely denticulate. The
lower jaw closes within the upper. The palatine arch, the
lingual cartilage, and the inner extremities of the first pair of
branchial arches are furnished with numerous small teeth.
Body sub-cylindric, flattened laterally, and tapering from
the pectoral fin to the tail. Skin scaleless ; smooth in the
recent specimen, but asperous when dried. Vent prominent,
situated beneath the dorsal fin.
All the fins numerously rayed, and all except the caudal
one, trapezoidal, and inserted on fleshy and elevated bases.
Caudal Pin expanded, bi-lobed ; the lower lobe shorter,
broader, and less oblique than the upper, which is serrated on
its superior edge.
Color. The head, back and sides are of a beautiful steel
blue, the throat and abdomen white, and the gill-covers macu-
lated by stellate impressions.
Length, from one to five feet.
Habitat. The Ohio river and its tributaries.
Observations. This species is distinguished from the
Platirostra edentula, of Lesson, by possessing numerous teeth,
by the snout being on a line with the back, by the greater
length of the appendage of the operculum, by the form, size,
and direction of the lobes of the caudal fin, and by the
smaller size and less oval form of the body.
It is taken in considerable numbers in the Licking river,
near Cincinnati, and exposed for sale in the markets. Its
flesh, I am informed, is tough and not palatable, though it is
occasionally eaten.
During the winter it does not forsake our streams, but se-
cretes itself in the mud and beneath logs in the deepest
waters. The peculiarly shaped nose seems designed to enable
it to search in the mud for its favorite food ; and we often find
and its Tributaries. 23
the end of that appendage coated with tenacious clay, when
first taken.
What it subsists on I have never been able to discover from
any thing contained in the stomach. In the specimens which
I have examined, a quantity of thick, muddy mucus only,
was contained in the stomach, except that in two there were
a number of Tceiiia or Tape-worms. Each of these parasites
was about two inches in length when extended, and was
made up of numerous joints about a line in length.
Two drawings, with descriptions of this fish, were publish-
ed in the American Journal of Science, Vol. XII. one by Dr.
Hildreth, another by a Mr. Clements. These authors proba-
bly overlooked the minute teeth, which, in recent specimens,
are thickly invested with a tenacious mucus, but are more
evident when the specimens are dessiccated.
LuxiLus. Rafinesque.
L. erythrog aster. Raf. The Red-belly Shiner.
Luxilus erythrog aster. Rafinesque. Ichthyologia Ohiensis, p. 47.
*' " Kirtland. Report on the Zoology of Ohio. Catc-
logue, p. 169.
PL II. Fig. %.
Head short, rather obtuse. Eyes circular ; irides golden
yellow ; pupils black. Jaivs equal.
Body full, sub-cylindrical, slightly compressed laterally.
Lateral line curved downwards along the abdomen, but up-
wards as it approaches its base.
Caudal Jin bi-lobed ; dorsal, anterior to the anal fin.
Length, from three to four inches.
Color. Fins a delicate yellow, back dark olive, with an
interrupted black stripe through its centre ; sides with two
black stripes, the upper extending from the caudal fin to the
base of the head ; the lower from the tail to the operculum,
and interruptedly along the base of the head, across the iris,
to the tip of the nose. The space between these black
stripes, white and silvery ; the abdomen white, occasionally
24 Fishes of the Ohio
tinged with carmine in some specimens, and wholly of a
bright carmine in others. The colors of the female are less
vivid than those of the male, and the black stripes on the sides
are often displaced by a muddy dun color.
C. 20 ; D. 8 ; P. 12 ; V. 8 ; A. 8.
Habitat. All the small brooks and rivulets in the West.
Observations. In my specimens, the anal fins were eight
rayed, though Rafinesque describes the species as having only
seven rays.
The colors are the most vivid in the Spring of the year,
when great numbers may be seen congregating on the shoals
and ripples of every spring-run, preparing to deposit their
spawn. After that process has been completed, they cease to
be gregarious, lose their beautiful colors, and return to the
deeper waters.
The thicker and more cylindrical form of the body, the
shortness of the head and jaws, and the different arrangement
of the colors, as well as its different habits, will readily dis-
tinguish it from the Luxilus elongatus.
A hasty observer might mistake the male and female for
distinct species. I have therefore furnished a sketch of both
sexes.
Fig. a. male.
Fig. b. female.
Lota. Cuvier.
L. maculosa. Le Sueur. The Eel-pout.
Lota maculosa. Cuv. Griffith's Cuv. Vol. X. p. 487.
" " Richardson. Fauna Boreali- Americana, p. 248.
** " Kirtland. Report on the Zoology of Ohio. p. 196.
Gadus maculdsus. Le Sueur. Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Vol. I. p. 83.
PI. III. Fig. 1.
The following description, of Le Sueur, I extract from the
first volume of the '^ Journal of the Academy of Natural Sci-
ence, of Philadelphia."
*' G. maculdsus. Jaws equal ; lower one with a single
and its Tributaries. 25
cirrus ; ground color of the body reddish, marbled with
brown, with roundish white spots scattered throughout ,• head
large, long and depressed ; eyes oblong, in a vertical line with
the angle of the mouth ; nostrils double, anterior are elongated
into a small barbel ; pectoral fins long, subtriangular, placed
horizontally ; jugular fins pointed, falciform, and whitish ;
anal fins shorter than the dorsal, and marked with pale spots ;
caudal fin large and rounded ; body mucous, covered with
small roundish scales, resembling depressed tubercles ; lateral
line in the middle of the body ; teeth small, sharp, and dis-
posed in twelve or fifteen ranges, resembling those of a wool-
card ; the palate and throat are equally furnished with teeth.
Branchiee 7 ; P. 18 ; D. 10—71 ; Jug. 6 ; A. 70 ; C. 44 rays.
The above described species I discovered in Lake Erie,
on the 14th of July, 1814. It is an esteemed fish, and is
commonly known under the name of the Dog-fish, and Eel-
pout. My specimen was two feet four inches in length."
Observations. Le Sueur is incorrect in giving this species
the common name of Dog-fish — that term is exclusively ap-
plied to the Amia calva.
The Eel-pout is an eatable fish, but is far from being es-
teemed, its flesh being dry, tough, and not highly flavored.
It is taken in considerable numbers about the harbor of
Cleaveland, by hooks and seines.
Salmo. Lin.
<S^. namaycush. Pennant. The Namaycush. The great
Trout of the Lakes.
Salmo namaycush. Pennant. Arctic Zoology, Vol. II. Supplement, p. 139.
" « Richardson. Fauna Boreali-Americana. p. 179, et fig.
'•« " Kirtland. Report on Zoology of Ohio. p. 195.
Salmo amelhystus. Mitchill. Journal Academy of Nat. Science, Vol. I. p. 410.
PI. III. Fig. 2.
Head obtuse, broad between the eyes, near one-fourth of
the total length of the fish. Maxillaries equal to one-fourth
the length of the head, curved downwards behind their mid-
4
26 Bachmari's Observations
die, armed with strong teeth through the whole extent of
their inferior edges ; a second row of teeth on the interior
margin of the upper jaw, and a single row on the lower jaw.
Anterior teeth inflected. Eyes anterior to the angle of the
mouth. Tongue armed with two rows of strong teeth.
Body sub-cylindric, fusiform, compressed a little on the
sides.
Dorsal fin over the middle of the body, and anterior to the
ventral s.
Adipose fin small, falciform.
Caudal fin rather broad, bi-lobed, lobes equaL
Anal fin reaches with its tip the base of the caudal.
Ventral fin situate behind the dorsal emd attains to the vent.
Pectoral fin falciform, acute, and does not extend as far
back as the dorsal.
Color clouded with brown and white ; darker on the back,
lighter on the sides, and white on the throat and belly. All
the fins reticulated with brown.
Length. Thirtyfour and a half inches is the length of a
specimen before me.
Habitat. Lake Erie and the Upper Lakes.
B. 13 ; D. 13 ; C. 19 ; A. 12 ; V. 9 ; P. 14 rays.
Observations. This fish inhabits the deepest waters of
Lake Erie, but does not often approach the shores. One was
however taken at the end of the pier by a boy fishing for
pike, two years since. It is caught in considerable numbers
during the winter, near Buffalo, by letting down hues through
holes in the ice. In some of the upper Lakes it is abundant.
Art. III. OBSERVATIONS ON THE GENUS SCALOPS, (SHREW
MOLES,) WITH DESCRIPTIONS OF THE SPECIES FOUND
IN NORTH AMERICA. By J. Bachman, D. D., Charleston, S. C.
Although this genus has, until very recently, been com-
posed of only a single acknowledged species, {Scalops Caiia-
densis of Desm.) its systematic derangement has given great
perplexity to naturalists. Linna-us placed it among the
on the Genus Scalops. 27
Shrews (Sorex), and Pennant among the Moles {Talpa).
Baron Cuvier finally established for it a new genus (Scalops),
where it still remains. The specimen, however, which he
made the type of the genus, contained but thirty teeth. The
upper jaw had but three lateral incisors, or false molars, on
each side, leaving considerable intermediate spaces between
the incisors and true molars. In this dental arrangement he
was followed by Desmerest, Dr. Harlan, Griffith, and nearly
all the naturalists of that period. Subsequently, however,
Fred. Cuvier gave a correct description of the teeth, which
he found amounted to thirtysix. Dr. Harlan, finding a skele-
ton from the vicinity of Philadelphia, which, in its dental
arrangement, corresponded generally with the characters given
by Fred. Cuvier, considered it a new species, and described it
under the name of Scalops Pennsylvanica^ (see Fauna
Americana, p. 33). Finally, Dr. Richardson described a spe-
cimen which was obtained on the Columbia River, which
contained fortyfour teeth, very difierently arranged. This
animal he refers to the S. Canadensis, {aquaticus, of Lin-
naeus,) supposing that the difference in the dentition, as
observed by different authors, was owing to their having ex-
amined and described speciinens of different ages. (See
Fauna Boreali-Americana, p. 82). I will endeavor to explain
and correct these contradictory views.
The specimens examined by Baron Cuvier, Desmarest, and
Dr. Harlan, were evidently young animals, with their denti-
tion incomplete. One half of the specimens now lying be-
fore me, present the same deficiency in the number of teeth—
also the edentate spaces between the incisors and grinders,
remarked by those authors. Those, on the other hand, that
were examined by Frederick Cuvier, Dr. Godman, and the
skeleton of Dr. Harlan's Scalops Pennsylvanica, were the
adults of the same species ; and the description of Dr. Rich-
ardson's specimen was that of a new species. (See Journal
Acad. Nat. Sciences, Vol. YHI. p. 5S.) I have been obliged
to make a slight alteration in the generic characters to admit
the species which have since been discovered.
28 Bachmaii's Observations
FAMILY. INSECTIVORA.
Genus S galops. Cuv. Shrew-mole.
Generic Charactei^s. Tecth^ from thirtysix to fortyfour.
Head long, terminated in an extended, cartilaginous, flexible,
pointed muzzle. Hands and arms broad, and armed with
strong nails, fitted to excavate the earth, resembling in their
general appearance those of the European mole, {Talpa).
Eyes, and ears concealed by the hair, and scarcely percepti-
ble. The hind feet are slender. Toes five on each foot,
furnished with small, hooked nails.
1. ScALOPS AQUATicus. Liuu. Common Shrew-miole.
Sorex aqudiicus ; Lin., System. JVat. I2i/t edition^ corrected^ Vol. I. 74.
Talpa fusca; Pennant, Brit. Zool. Quadrupeds. 314.
Scalops Canadensis ; D E sM . , Mam .115.
Scalope de Canada; Cuv., Re^ne. Anim. 134.
ShreiD-molt ; Godman, J^at. Hist. I. 84. pi. 5, f. 3.
Scalops Canadensis ; Harlan, Favna. 32, young.
Scalops Pennsylvanica ; ILvklak, ibid. 33, adult.
Dental formula. Incisors |. False molars ^^. True mo-
lars f.=36.
In the adult animal there are twenty teeth in the upper
jaw. The incisors are of a moderate size, rounded on their
front surface, and flattened posteriorly. Immediately behind
the incisors are found two minute teeth on each side, crowded
together. These are succeeded by four larger, false molars of
a cylindrical shape, and pointed. The fourth is the smallest.
The fifth is a little larger, and slightly lobed, and the sixth,
which is the largest, is more conspicuously lobed. Then
follow three true molars, each furnished witli three sharp tu-
bercles.
In the lower jaw, which contains sixteen teeth, the two
posterior incisors are very small ; these are succeeded on each
side by another, much larger, pointed, and extending forwards.
The three false molars Avhich succeed these are pointed,
and the third and largest slightly lobed. The three true
molars are composed of two parallel prisms, terminated, each
by three points, and presenting one of their angles on the
on the Genus Scalops. 29
outer side, and one of their faces on the internal surface ; the
two first are of the same size ; the last somewhat smaller.*
In the young animals, which I conjectured to be under a
year old, I have found the two small thread-like teeth that
are placed behind the incisors, in the upper jaw, entirely
wanting, as also the fourth lateral incisor on each side, leav-
ing vacant spaces between them and presenting the appearance
ascribed to them by Cuvier and Desmarest. The latter teeth
are first supplied, and finally, as the animal becomes fully
matured, the two first also make their appearance, when all
the edentate spaces between the molars and grinders are filled
up.
The description, not only of the teeth, but of the form and
habits of this quadruped, are so correctly given by Godman,
in his excellent article on the Shrew-mole, (Vol. I. p. 81,)
that in the present state of our knowledge little remains to be
added. My descriptions, from specimens now before me, of
an animal common in every part of the United States, are
only given in this place to enable the student of nature con-
veniently to compare it with other species which will be
noticed in this article.
Form. The common Shrew-mole has a thick, cylindrical
body, and the head, at the first sight, seems attached to the
shoulders without an intermediate neck. The snout is naked,
cartilaginous, and very flexible, extended five lines beyond
the incisors. The under surface projects a little beyond the
nostrils, which are oblong, and open on the upper surface
near each other. The mouth is large, and when open, re-
sembles in miniature, that of the hog. The eyes are a mere
speck, concealed by the fur, and, to appearance, covered with
an integument. There is no external ear, but a small, circu-
lar aperture exists, about three-fourths of an inch behind the
eye.
The whole of the fore-arm is concealed by the skin, and
its broad palms only are visible. The palms are large and
naked, not unlike these of the human hand, bordered with
stiff hair. The nails are large, nearly convex above, and
* Godman.
30 Bachman^s Observations
flattened on the inner surface. The hind feet are compara-
tively smal], naked on the under surface, and nearly so above.
The nails are slender, and moderately arched. The tail is
short, round, nearly naked, sparingly sprinkled with short
hairs.
Color. The nails are a horn-color. The snout, in the
living animal, is of a light flesh-color ; chin, feet, and tail,
being the naked portions of the body, are nearly white. The
hair, which is about five lines in length, and very soft, smooth
and lustrous, is for three -fourths of its length dark plumbeous,
tipt on the outer surface with light brown, giving the whole
animal, above and beneath, a dark brown appearance, varying
under different lights, with black, silvery, and purple re-
flections.
Dimensions. Measurement of a specimen in the flesh.
Length from snout to root of tail, - 4 inches, 7 lines.
do. of tail, - - - - - "9
Breadth of palm, - ... 6
Length of do. to end of nail, - - - 9
Heel to extremity of nail, - - - 6
Geographical Distribution. I have received specimens of
this animal from nearly all the States of the Union, East of
the Mississippi. It abounds in South Carolina and Georgia,
and is common in the Middle States. I have obtained it in
Mississippi and Florida ; it exists also in Canada and the
New England States. In restoring to this species the specific
name of its first describer, I have adhered to a rule which it
is necessary to adopt in order to prevent the repetition of
synonyms. The name '' aquaticiis,^^ certainly does not
apply to the habits of the animal, but that of Canadensis j in
reference to its locality, is equally unfortunate, as it is far
more common in the Southern States than in Canada. I
have attached the name of the original describer of the spe-
cies, although it has been removed to another genus ; believ-
ing that the first describer is entitled to this credit, in prefer-
ence to him who has merely placed it under another genus.
Were this rule adhered to, in all cases, some check might be
put on the art of system-making, now carried to such an
on the Genus Scalops. 31
extent, that the student of natural history finds it a grievous
evil.
2. ScALOPs TowNSENDi. Bach. Townsend's Shrew-mole,
Scalops Canadensis ; KjcHxnBso:!!. Fauna Boreali-jSmericana. p. 9.
Scalops Townsendi ; Bach. Jour. Acad. Nat. Scien. VIII. p. 58.
Characters. Townsend's Shrew-mole. Larger than Sca-
lops aquaticusj color darker, having a different dental arrange-
ment.
This species, first described by Dr. Richardson, was incor-
rectly referred to the common Shrew-mole of the United
States ; but its size and dentition are sufficient evidence of its
being a new and distinct species.
A specimen of this quadruped was kindly presented to me
by Mr. Nuttall, who requested that, in case it should prove a
distinct species, it might be given under the above name. I
subsequently received from Mr. Townsend another specimen,
a little larger in size, which I presume to be a mere variety,
although very singularly marked.
Dental formula. Incisors |- ; False mol. If ; True mo-
lars 1^44.
Length of the head and body, - 7 inches, 6 lines.
Length of tail, ... - 1 6
Breadth of palm, - - . - 6
The body of the specimen received from Mr. Nuttall, is
thick and cylindrical, shaped like the Shrew-mole of the
United States. The whole upper and under surface is of a
dark color, in most lights appearing black ; the hair, when
blown aside, exhibits a greyish black color, from the roots to
neai' the tips. The tail is slightly clothed with short, strong
bristles.
The specimen brought by Mr. Townsend, is thicker, and
about an inch longer. It has a white stripe, about two lines
wide, commencing under the chin and running in a somewhat
irregular line, along the under surface of the body to within
an inch and a half of the insertion of the tail ; there is also
32 Bachmari^s Observations
a white streak commencing on the forehead and extending
along the snout.
The specimen of Mr. Townsend is labelled, " Banks of the
Columbia River, May 9th, 1835 ;" that of Mr. Nuttall was, I
believe, obtained in the same locality.
In the upper jaw, the incisors are large, and a third higher
than the false molars which immediately follow them. These
are succeeded by three small teeth of a nearly conical shape,
increasing in length from the first to the third. The fourth
false molar on each side is the smallest, the fifth is a little
larger in size, and slightly compressed, the sixth still larger,
and has a considerable posterior projection. The four poste-
rior grinders, or true molars, are much larger and higher than
the anterior ones. The first of these is rather small, and has
two lobes with a small internal tubercle; the second and
third are the largest, and nearly resembling each other, exhib-
iting three distinct points, two external and posterior, one
anterior, the external ones being the longest; the last grinder
is the smallest and of a triangular form.
In the lower jaw are two very small incisors in front. Next
to these are two of a considerably larger size, which, although
regarded as incisors, are nearly of the same shape and appear-
ance as those which come next to them. The false molars
are six on each side, of nearly the same size and inclining
forward. The three true molars which succeed, are large,
nearly of the same size, and although smaller, correspond
with those in the upper jaw.
3. S GALOPS Breweri. Bach. Brewefs Shrew-mole.
Characters. Brewer's Shrew-mole. Glossy cinereous
black above, brownish beneath. Palms narrow. Tail flat,
broad and hairy.
Through the attention of my friend Dr. Brewer, an indus-
trious and intelligent naturalist of Boston. I am enabled to
present a new and very distinctly marked species, to which I
have attached the above name. The specimen was found by
Dr. L. M. Yale, at Martha's Vineyard, an Island on the coast
of New England.
on the Genus Scalops. 33
Dental formula. Incisors | ; false molars |J ; true mo-
lars I =44.
The skull of Sc. Breweri is narrower and more elongated
than that of the Sc. aquaticus. The cerebral portion of the
skull is less voluminous ; the inter-orbital portion is narrower,
each of the intermaxillary bones in Sc. aquaticus^ throws out
a process which projects upwards and forms the upper boun-
dary of the nasal cavity, and are very slightly separated by
the nasal bones, whilst in Sc. Breweri^ these processes are
shorter, and scarcely project upwards above the plane of the
nasal bone. Thus, when we view the snout of the Sc. aquat-
icus, laterally, it is distinctly recurved at the tip ; whereas in
Sc. Breweri the upper surface is almost plane. But the most
striking difference between these skulls is exhibited in the
dentition, inasmuch asj in our present species, there are alto-
gether 44 teeth, in Sc. aquaticus there are but 36. Thus, in
the number of teeth Sc. Breweri resembles Sc. Townsendi.
The body of Brewer's shrew-mole is perhaps a little larger
than that of the Sc. aquaticus. Its snout is less flattened
and narrower ; its nostrils, instead of being inserted in a kind
of bouton, as in the European Talpa, and the swine, or on
the upper surface of the muzzle as in the common shrew-
mole, are placed on each side, near the extremities of the
nose. This species is pentadactylous, like all the rest of the
genus. Claws longer, thinner, and sharper than the common
shrew-mole. Palm much narrower. Its most striking pecu-
liarity however, is its tail, which, instead of being round and
nearly naked, like that of the Sc. aquaticus^ is flat and broad,
resembling in some respects that of the Beaver, and is very
thickly clothed, above and beneath, with long stifi" hairs,
which extend five lines beyond the vertebrae.
Color. The color, above and beneath, is a glossy cinereous
black, like velvet, precisely similar to that of the European
mole ( Talpa Europcea) with which I have compared it. Un-
der the throat there is a slight tinge of brown, the tail is ashy
brown above and light beneath. The fur is about one-third
longer than that of the common shrew-mole.
5
34 Bachman's Observations.
Length of the head and body, • 5 inches 1 1 lines.
Tail vertebrae, - • - - 1
Do. including fur, - • - 1 5
Breadth of tail, ... 4
Do. of palm, ... 4
Length of do. to end of middle claw, - 7
In the Maseiim of the Zoological Society of London there
is a specimen, obtained from the United States, which I think
is the same species. It is marked in the printed catalogue,
No. 145 " Sc. Breweri, Bachman's MSS." It however differs
in having the fur more compact and shorter, the color some-
what darker, and in fact almost black. The hairs of the tail,
instead of being of a brownish ash color, are black, and the
hind feet, instead of being covered above with brownish
white hairs, as in my specimens, are brownish black.
Dimensions of the skull of the above three species.
Length of Skulls. Width of do. Length of palate.
•S. aquaticus^ 1 inch 4 lines 8 lines. 7 lines.
s.
Townsendi,
1
((
7J
((
9*
li
8i
((
s.
Breweri^
1
((
3
C(
7i
((
6J
((
4. ScALOPS LATiMANus. Bach. Broad palmed Shrew-mole.
Characters. Broad palmed Shrew-mole, larger than the
common Shrew-mole, intermediate in size between Sc. Town-
sendi and Sc. Breweri. Hair longer and thinner than in either
of the other species, and slightly curled. Palms larger than
in any of the known species ; color nearly black.
In the rich and daily increasing collections contained in the
Berlin Museum, one of the most valuable in Europe, especially
in the Mexican and South American birds and animals, I
observed two specimens of an undescribed species of Scalops,
obtained from some part of Mexico, which, through the kind-
ness and liberality of Professor Lichtenstein, the director of
the Royal Museum, I was permitted to describe. I subse-
quently received a similar specimen from Texas, near the
northern boundary line, and I have no doubt it exists also in
Arkansas. I regret that I had no opportunity of examining
the skulls and teeth of the specimens in the Berlin Museum,
Phosphate of Uranium in the Tourmaline. 35
and that, in the specimen from Texas the skull is wanting.
The external form, however, is sufficient to estabUsh it as a
distinct species.
In shape this species resembles our common Shrew-mole ;
it is, however, much stouter and larger, appearing nearly
double the size. Its color is darker, the hair is longer and
co£u:ser, and much less compact, presenting none of the smooth,
lustrous appearance of the Sc, aquations. Its most striking
peculiarity, however, and that which entitles it to its specific
name, is its very broad palm.
Color. Hairs, from the roots, dark gray, tipt with dark
brown, giving it a blackish appearance. Teeth large, nearly
double the size of Sc. aquaticus. Tail naked, as in the for-
mer species.
Length from the point of nose to root of tail, 7 inches 7 lines.
Length of tail, - - - 1 " 7
Breadth of palm, - . - 10
Tarsus, ----- 7
Art. IV.— on THE OCCURRENCE OF THE PHOSPHATE OF
URANIUM IN THE TOURMALINE LOCALITY AT CHES-
TERFIELD. By J. E. Teschemacher.
In breaking up for examination some specimens of the
green and red Tourmaline, from the well known Chesterfield
locality, for the purpose of finding the Microlite of Professor
Shepard, I observed a few minute, yellow crystalline plates of
a cubic form ; as I found them completely soluble in nitric
acid, it was evident they could not be the mineral described
by the Professor.
Possessing, myself, but few facilities for chemical analysis,
I collected together sufficient to forward to Mr. A. A. Hayes,
of Roxbury, requesting a qualitative analysis, with the sug-
gestion that the external characters agreed entirely with those
of the Salts of Uranium. This gentleman kindly sent me
the following reply :
36 Phosphate of Uranium in the Tourmaline.
" The mineral is one of the Uranium family, as you suggest-
ed, and appears to contain phosphoric acid and oxide of Ura-
nium, as essential constituents, only. In nitric acid it readily
dissolves, without effervescence ; the result of the solution
treated with ammonia, gives a yellow ammoniacal salt of ura-
nium. When the ammoniacal salt is treated with carbonate
of ammonia it dissolves, and in a solution of muriate of
ammonia can be precipitated as a white flocculent matter, re-
sembling the phosphate of uranium. The solution in nitric
acid gives with Ferrocyanate of Potash the characteristic
chesnut-brown precipitate of Uranium Salts."
The quantity found was small ; there were however two or
three well defined cubic crystals, from two to three lines
diameter, and varying in color from straw-yellow to light
green. Some crystals exist in the red centre of the Tourma-
line, and are exposed on splitting the crystals ; others are on
the quartz and on the Albite forming the mass.
Many of these Tourmalines are in a state of internal disin-
tegration ; the interior is then often found in a fibrous stale.
In the midst of, and attached to, the fibres, I have found sev-
eral crystals of this phosphate of uranium, probably existing
there originally, and not sharing in the decomposition of the
surrounding substances.
I am not aware that this mineral has yet been noticed from
this locality, and believe it to be hitherto of very rare occur-
rence in the United States.
The examination of these Chesterfield Tourmalines is ex-
tremely interesting. I have found two other substances
accompanying them, of species unknown to me, and differing
from any I possess ; these shall be examined at my leisure.
The frequent abandonment of the study of Mineralogy for
that of the more imposing science of Geology, is much to be
regretted ; and I believe when the former shall be pursued
with the peculiar views of elucidating the processes of the
formation and consolidation of rocks of various mineralogical
composition, the actions by which crystalline deposits, inclu-
ding those in cavities, are produced, and particularly of inves-
tigating the changes, re-combinations and metamorphoses
The Shells of New England. 37
different minerals undergo from the commencement and
throughout the progress of internal as well as of external de-
composition, that much unexpected light will be thrown on
several of the great problems of Geology.
Boston, 6th April, 1841.
Art. v.— descriptions OF TWENTYFOUR SPECIES OF
THE SHELLS OF NEW ENGLAND. By J. W. Mighels, M. D.,
of Portland, Me., and Prof. C. B. Adams, of Middlebury College, Vt.
(Read Nov. 17, 1841.)
We regard nineteen of the recent, and the two fossil spe-
cies as new. The other three species we have discovered, for
the first time, on our coast. The two species of Cingula,
viz. C. semicostata and C. arenaria^ are probably identical
with Turbo semicostatus and T. are^idrius, of Montagu : one
species of Margarita, probably identical with M. acuminata^
Sowerby.
Notwithstanding the extraordinary advance which has been
made, within four years, in the Conchology of New England,
by the discovery of species hitherto unknown, or not observed
within our limits, the rich treasures of Nature's storehouse are
not yet entirely exhausted. The stomachs of fishes, to which
attention was first directed by our honored associate, Mr. J. P.
Couthouy, have been fertile sources of discovery. With the
exception of Pleurotoma violdcea, all the following recent ma-
rine species have been taken from the stomachs of Haddocks,
{Morrhua ceglejimis. Lin.) and Codfishes, {Morrliua Amer-
icana^ Storer. ) In addition to these, a rich store of most of
the species described by Mr. Couthouy and Dr. A. A. Gould,
and until very recently extremely rare, has been obtained
from the same sources.
We most cheerfully acknowledge our indebtedness to our
esteemed friend, Dr. Gould, for his aid in identifying most of
the species, and to several gentlemen who have aided us in
our explorations ; among whom wc would particularly notice
38 Mighels^ and Adams^ Descriptions of
J. Ray, M. D., formerly of Eastport, now superintendent of
the Insane Hospital at Augusta, Me., and Mr. N. T. True,
Preceptor of the Academy at Monmouth, Me.
THRACIA TRUNCATA.
Plate IV. Fig. 1.
T. testa parva, solida, per-inequilaterali, postice truncata, et striata : callo
nymphali producto.
Shell small, white, rather solid, abruptly truncate posteri-
orly, very inequilateral ; surface Avith three regions ; the ante-
rior region separated from the posterior by an umbonial angle,
which extends from the beak to the lower extremity, marked
with numerous minute incremental striae ; posterior region
with the incremental striae distinct and very much crowded ;
areolar region narrow, with regular striae of growth ; epider-
mis thin, of a pale straw-color ; beaks small, that of the right
side moderately excavated for the reception of the left ; poste-
rior dorsal margin straight, descending abruptly to an angle
with the anterior, which is also straight, making an angle with
the inferior, which is moderately curved: anterior margin
regularly rounded ; anterior dorsal margin slightly curved ;
ligament rather large and prominent ; interior of a clear
white ; nymphaeal callosity not spoon-shaped, produced ; pal-
lial impression deeper than wide.
Average length, ^75 inch ; height, ,5 inch ; width, ,29 inch.
Cabinets of Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., J. W. Mighels, and
C. B. Adams.
Habitat. Casco Bay, Me., obtained in 1840, from stom-
achs of haddock.
Remark. Although this shell is small, its solidity, quite
unusual in the genus, forbids the supposition that it is imma-
ture. It is remarkably distinct from other species in the dis-
parity of the anterior and posterior sides, whose length are as
eight to three. It must be regarded as exceedingly rare,
three or four years exploration having developed only four or
five specimens.
Shells of New England. 39
CYCLAS MINOR.
PJate IV. Fig. 2.
C. testa, minima, ovatci, inequilateral!; natibus tumidis, approximatis ; mar-
ginibus rotundatis; dentibus omaibus fortibus.
Shell very small, ovate, inequilateral, finely striate, shining,
horn color, yellowish towards the margin ; beaks rather prom-
inent, moderately tumid, not undulate, approximate, situated
two-fifths the distance from one extremity to the other ; mar-
gins rounded, both the cardinal and lateral teeth well de-
veloped.
Length, ,18 inch ; height, ,15 inch ; width, ,11 inch.
Habitat. Found among dead leaves, in a swamp, in Wey-
bridge, Yt., in the spring of 1839. Subsequently it has been
found in several other places in the vicinity, and in Portland,
Me. It is not confined to the water, but is often found a foot
or more from it, burrowing deep in the mud, and under stones.
It is in the Cabinets of the Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., J. W.
Mighels, and C. B. Adams.
CYCLAS NITIDA.
Plate IV. Fig. 3.
C. testa sub-ovatfi, inequilateral! ; natibus parvis, baud approximatis; dentibus
lateralibns fortibus, cardinalibus obsoletis.
Shell sub-ovate, inequilateral, finely striate, shining, horn
color, yellowish towards the margin, often blueish on the
umbones ; beaks small, rather prominent, not undulate, not
approximate, situated about two-fifths of the distance from
one extremity to the other ; inferior margin well rounded, the
other margins moderately rounded ; cardinal teeth obsolete,
lateral teeth well developed.
Length, ,3 inch ; height, ,24 inch ; width, ,2 inch.
Habitat. We obtained a few specimens of this species at
Norway, Oxford Co., Me., in the summer of 1840. It is very
rare. It is in the Cabinets of the Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., J. W.
Mighels, and C. B. Adams.
Remarks. The embryo shell is elliptical, obliquely striate,
40 Mighels^ and Adams^ Descriptions of
compressed ; is ,06 inch long, ,05 inch high, and ,025 inch
wide. It resembles C. minor ^ Nob., but the beaks in these
shells are approximate and proportionally larger ; this species
differs also in having the cardinal teeth obsolete both in the
young and mature shell, and it is much larger.
NUCULA DELPHINODONTA.
Plate IV. Fig. 5.
N. testa parva, eolida, trigona, transverse sub-sulcata ; angulis umbonalibua
duobus'; natibus prorninentibus, sub-terminalibus ; dentibus anticis tribus, pos-
ticis septem, elevatis, conicis, acutis.
Shell small, solid, very wide, oblique, triangular, trans-
versely ribbed and striate irregularly ; anterior margin nearly
straight above, curved below, inferior margin well rounded,
posterior moderately curved, making a right angle with the
anterior ; surface divided into three regions by the umbonial
angles which diverge from the beaks ; these are prominent,
nearly terminal, often eroded ; epidermis green ; seven poste-
rior and three anterior teeth, which are very long, slender and
pointed.
Average length, ,13 inch; height, ,11 inch; width, ,09
inch.
Cabinets of Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., J. W. Mighels, and C. B.
Adams.
Habitat. Casco Bay. Several hundred specimens were
taken from the stomach of a single haddock, in the spring of
1841. At several times subsequently we have obtained them
from the same source, sparingly.
Remarks. This species is allied to N. proxima, Say, and
N. teiitiis, Turton, but is distinct from both in the number
and arrangement of the teeth ; also in respect to form, ante-
rior and posterior umbonial angles, and in its greater width.
NUCULA CASCOENSIS.
Plate IV. Fig. G.
N. testii ovato-lanceolatA, sub-inequilaterali, compressa ; postic^ attenuata;
areolfi valde compressa; natibus parvis ; dentibus anticis decern, posticis duo-
decim, parvis.
Shell ovate-lanceolate, rather thin, finely striate, slightly
Shells of New England. 41
inequilateral ; anterior half regularly semi-oval ; posterior half
tapering nearly to a point, with an areola well defined, sharply
compressed, with a slight wave below the areola ; epidermis
greenish straw-color ; beaks small, nearly central ; within
pearly- white ; teeth small, ten anterior, and ten or twelve pos-
terior, including some very minute ones near the beaks.
Length, ,6 inch ; height, ,35 inch ; width, ,09 inch.
Cabinets oi G. B. Sowerby, Esq., J. W. Mighels, and G. B.
Adams.
Habitat. Gasco Bay. A single specimen was found in
the stomach of a haddock in the spring of 1840. Subse-
quently we have found a single specimen of the above dimen-
sions, and four or five very small ones.
Remarks. This species is allied to N. limatulaj Say, and
N. myalis, Gouth., but is easily distinguished from both by
the number of the teeth, the beaks being nearer the posterior
extremity, and being much more compressed than either. It
more nearly resembles the latter, but is uniformly lighter
colored.
PECTEN TENUICOSTATUS.
Plate IV. Fig. 7.
P. testa parvd, tenui, Bub-inequivalvi ; valvasuperiore plerumque rubro-fusca,
tenuicostata, costis tnajoribus 25 usque ad 30, totidem minoribus ; auribus cos-
tulatis; valva inferiore pallide rubro-fusc^ ; extus et intus lasvi.
Shell small, sub-orbicular, higher than long, thin, equilat-
eral, sub-equi valve, upper valve a little more convex ; with
twentyfive to thirty slender ribs and smaller ones interme-
diate ; for the most part reddish-brown ; inferior valve smooth,
paler than the upper ; ears slightly unequal, those of the upper
valve delicately ribbed, of the other smooth ; color internally
the same as externally ; inner surface of the lower valve
smooth, that of the upper grooved.
Length, ,5 inch ; height, ,56 inch; width, ,14 inch.
Cabinets of Mons. Largillier, J. W. Mighels, and G. B.
Adams.
Habitat. Gasco Bay, taken from stomachs of haddock in
the summer of 1840. We have found but four specimens.
6
42 Mighels^ and Adams^ Descriptions of
Remarks. This is unquestionably a very rare species. It
does not appear to be very nearly allied to any of the other
species found on our coast. Further research will be neces-
sary to determine whether or not the specimens already found
are mature. Like most of the Pectens, this shell varies very
much in coloring.
CHITON MENDICARIUS.
Plate IV. Fig. 8.
C. testa elongatd, in medio longitudinaliter ad latus irregulariter granulatd,
cinere^, nubeculat^ j areis-parum conspicuis ; margine coriaceo, rabro.
Shell cinereous, with dark clouds, long-oval with obtuse
dorsal ridges, surface with elevated dots or granules disposed
in longitudinal lines, except towards the margin, where they
are irregular and larger ; no visible concentric striae ; triangu-
lar areas very indistinct, outer ones small ; margin coriaceous,
red.
Length, 1 inch ; breadth, ,4 inch ; width of margin, ,06
inch.
Habitat. Casco Bay. This very distinct species was
taken from the stomach of a haddock in June, 184L Only a
single specimen has been found, which is in the cabinet of
J. W. Mighels.
CEMORIA PRINCEPSo
Plate IV. Fig. 9.
C. testi alba, procerA, costnlalci, punctulatd; rirnaintHs in canalenr] proJucta,
fornice obtectus ; fornice lateraliter testae alls adjuncto ; apertura ovata, cren-
ulata.
Shell clear white, elevated, conical, with twenty five to
thirty slight, obtuse ribs, and intervening small ones, the
dividing striae minutely punctured : summit decumbent, with
a single minute whorl ; apex visible on the right side ; an-
terior slope rectilinear, posterior slope sub-rectilinear ,• from
the rima within, a narrow groove with callous sides proceeds
anteriorly, covered in part by a flattened arch, which arises
Shells of New England. 43
from the summit of the rima, and is strengthened above by a
plate miiting it with the sides of the shell j aperture ovate,
;slightly crenate.
Length, ,46 inch ; width, ,33 inch ; height, ,35 inch.
Cabinets of G. B. Sowerby, J. W. Mighels, and C. B.
Adams.
Habitat. This shell was taken from the stomach of a had-
dock, by Mr. Newbegin, a fisherman, in July, 1840, seventy-
five to one hundred miles off the mouth of Kennebec river,
on fishing ground called by the fishermen " Monhegan Falls. ^^
The water at that place is from forty to seventyfive fathoms
in depth.
Remarks. This very singular and truly splendid species
resembles C. Noachina, Lin., but differs from that shell in the
following characters ; in C. Noachina the ribs are more eleva-
ted, the corresponding interior sulci are much more obvious ;
posterior slope much and regularly curved, shell smaller, pro-
portionately longer, not so high, interior arch without wings.
Only four specimens have been found.
BULLA PUJNCTO-STRIATA.
Plate IV. Fig. 10.
B. testa alba, solida, eleganter striatEi ; Btriis crebris, inequidistantibus, punc-
tatis ; spira occulta ; apertura magna.
Shell white, rather solid, ovate, with crowded, inequidistant,
distinctly punctate strice ; spire concealed ; aperture very
large, contracted at the upper third by the intrusion of the
body whorl ; labrum rising above the apex, very sharp and
regularly arcuate ; labium with a very thin lamina extending
to the apex.
Length, ,38 inch ; breadth, ,24 inch.
Habitat. Casco Bay ; taken from the stomach of a had-
dock, in the summer of 184 L
Remarks. This remarkable and truly beautiful shell, re-
sembles an enlarged specimen of B. lineolata, Couth., to
which it is allied ; but it is easily distinguished by its larger
size, by the elevation of the labrum above the apex, and above
44 Mighels^ and Adams^ Descriptions of
all, by the punctate striae. Only a single specimen has been
found. It is in the cabinet of J. W. Mighels.
PHYSA FRAGILIS.
Plate IV. Fig. 12.
P. testa tenuiasim^, oblique ovat& ; §pira brevi ; anfractibus quatuor; f^pei^
tur& subovata, repand^ J labiolumido, lamina obtecto.
Shell very thin and fragile, translucent, horn-color, obliquely
ovate ; whorls four ; last whorl canipanulate ; suture deeply
impressed at the enlargement of the last whorl ; spire usually
less than one, sometimes only one-fourth part of the length
of the shell ; labrum very thin, advanced ; labium tumid
with a thin, loosely adherent lamina.
Length, ^55 inch ; greatest breadth, ,4 inch ; divergence, 90
degrees.
Animal of a very obscure, light green color ; whole surface
of the body covered with oblong dark spots ; foot shorter than
the shell, lanceolate ; tentacles nearly white, rather long, very
slender ; mouth blood-red. Its motions are exceedingly rapid ;
very timid, withdrawing itself on the least alarm. It is very
tenacious of life, at least it is not easily starved. Three spe-
cimens are now before us in a tumbler of water, November
10th, where they have remained since the first of July. The
water has not been changed more than half a dozen times,
yet they are as brisk as when first taken ; and, moreover, they
have grown at least one quarter ; exuviae white, abundant,
vermicular.
Cabinets of Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist,, Amherst and Middlebury
Colleges, Mons. Largillier, S. S. Haldeman, J. W. Mighels,
and C. B. Adams.
Habitat. Monmouth, Maine ; discovered in a mill-pond
after the water was drawn off, by Mr. N. T. True, to whom
we are indebted for specimens.
Remarks. This species is distinguished from P. heterbs^
tro'pha by the campanulate aperture, which is constant, shorter
spire, tumid labium, and by its remarkable tenuity.
Shells of New England. 45
LIMNiEA DECOLLATA.
Plate IV. Fig. 13. 13, a, b, c.
L. testa ventricosa ; anfraclibus duobus vel tribus, ultimo magno; spira brevi-
uscula, plerumque decollata ; sutura impressa; apertura maximi, eub-campa-
nulati ; labro porrecto ; columella valide plicata.
Shell very ventricose, rather thick, sub-ovate, or sub-rotund,
in outUne an irregular rhomboid ; epidermis of an ohvaceous
green color, rather thin, deciduous ; whorls two to three ;
spire very short, generally decollated ; whole surface gener-
ally rather rough ; striae of growth coarse and fine alter-
nately ; transverse striae on the body whorl sparse, interrupted,
sometimes obsolete ; body whorl composes almost the whole
shell ; aperture very large, sub-campanulate ; its length is
very little greater than the breadth, and occupies more than
two-thirds the length of the shell ; labrum rather thin, sim-
ple ; fold of the columella very prominent.
Length, ,6 inch ; breadth, ,5 inch ; height, ,4 inch.
Animal dingy mouse-color, with a slight tinge of pm'ple,
covered with numerous, microscopic, elongated, white spots,
on every visible part of the surface, including the mouth and
tentacula ; foot of a chocolate-color, rather broad, length rather
greater than the aperture ; habits sluggish.
Cabinets of Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., Dr. Gould, S. S. Halde-
man, J. G. Anthony, J. W. Mighels, and C. B. Adams.
Habitat. Unity, Me., discovered by Dr. Milliken of that
town, to whom we are indebted for specimens.
Remarks. This odd, but interesting shell, is easily recog-
nized by its rhomboidal aspect, wide aperture, decollated spire
and rather rough and distorted appearance. It is allied to
L. catascopiuni, Say, but is distinct from that shell by having
less whorls by two, and a much shorter spire ; by being wider,
and its divergence greater by more than thirty degrees. By
some it has been supposed to be identical with L. emarginata,
Say. This is impossible. L. emarginata is much more cy-
lindrical, the divergence of its spire is scarcely half as great
as that of our shell, it is much thinner, and has at least two
more volutions. Our shell is also destitute of the '' deep
emargination" which distinguishes L. emarginata.
46 Mighels^ and Adams^ Descriptions of
MARGARITA VARICOSA.
Plate IV. Fig. 14.
M. testa parva, tenui, conica ; anfractibus quatuor, convexis ; longitudinaliter
costulatia, transverse striatis j sutura sub-canaliculata ; umbilico magno, profando.
Shell small, thin, low, conical, of a dingy white or drab
color ; whorls four, convex, covered with numerous longitu-
dinal, oblique ribs, intersected by a great number of treuis-
verse, revolving striae, which are most conspicuous on the
lower part and base of the lower whorl. The striae on the
upper part of the whorls can only be seen with a magnifier.
Suture distinct, sub-canaliculate ; umbilicus rather large and
deep, bounded by two rather rugged varices, intersected by
the ribs which are continued to the verge of the umbilicus ;
aperture circular ; labrum simple, sharp ; within perlaceous.
Height, ,25 inch ; diameter of base equal to the height ;
divergence, 90 degrees.
Habitat. Bay Chaleur ; taken from the stomach of a cod-
fish, {Morrhua Americana, Storer,) in the summer of 1841,
by our fisherman, Mr. Foster.
Remarks. Only a single specimen of the above dimen-
sions has been obtained, and one other, much smaller and
somewhat worn. It is easily distinguished from all its con-
geners by the longitudinal, oblique ribs, and the two varices
at the base. It is in the cabinet of J. W. Mighels.
MARGARITA ACUiMINATA.
Plate IV. Fig. 15.
M. teslA parva, orbicular!, tenui, albicante ; [spir^ acuminata ; anfractibus
quatuor, rotundatis, laevibus; sutura valde imprcBsa ; apertura orbiculaii, intus
iridescente ; umbilico parvo.
Shell small, orbicular, sub-conical, thin, of a grayish white
or russet-color ; spire acuminate ; whorls four, well rounded,
smooth, covered with a thin, semi-transparent epidermis,-
striae of growth very fine and compact ; suture well impressed ;
aperture orbicular, considerably oblique, beautifully iridescent
within ; operculum horny, spiral.
Shells of New England. 47
Height, ,25 inch ; diameter, ,26 inch *, divergence, 80
degrees.
Habitat. Gulf of St. Lawrence ; taken from the stomach
of a cod-fish, by Mr. Foster, in the summer of 1841. Only
a single specimen was found, which is in the cabinet of J. W.
Mighels.
Remarks. Identical with a species described by Mr. Sow-
erby, Conch. Illustr., fig. 7, under the above name. Although
Mr. Sowerby's figure agrees well with our shell, his de-
scription does not so in ail respects. For instance, " anfrac-
tibus quinque." Our shell has but four turns. Again,
^'Long. 0,55, lat. 0,5 poll." Thus we see that Mr. Sow-
erby's shell is not only twice as large as our specimen, but
proportionally higher. The breadth of our shell in its
longest basal diameter is greater than the height. But as
we have only a single specimen, we prefer to publish it
with the assumption that it is identical with M. acuminata^
rather than produce confusion by hazarding a new name for
an old shell.
TROCHUS OCCIDENTALIS.
PI. IV. Fig. 16.
T. testa, pallida, imperforata, anfractibus septem, convexis; carinis pallide
fuscis ; infra laevi; sutura impressa ; columella callosa.
Shell rather small, somewhat solid, sub-translucent, pale
horn-color, with light brown revolving carinas, of which
there are three on the upper whorls, and four to six on the
lower one ; whorls seven, convex : suture distinct ; spire
three-fifths of the length of the shell ; apex acute ; last whorl
with a smooth space between the carinas and two or three
course revolving striae around the umbilical region ; aperture
moderately depressed, transversely ovate ; labrum crenulated
by the carinas ; columella callous ; umbilical region indented.
Height ,5 inch ; greatest basal diameter ,43 inch ; diver-
gence 60 degrees.
Cabinets of Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., G. B. Sowerby, Mons.
Largillier, J. W. Mighels and C. B. Adams.
48 MigheW and Adams^ Descriptions of
Habitat. Casco Bay ; taken from stomachs of haddock, in
the summer of 1840, and subsequently.
Remarks. This is the only species of true Trochus that
has ever been discovered on this Atlantic coast. It is not
nearly allied to any species with which we are acquainted,
unless we regard Turbo (Margarita) dnereus, Couth. — Tro-
chus costalis, Loven, as a true Trochus. A careless observer
would be likely to confound them ; but besides several other
essential points of difference, our shell is easily distinguished
from all the known species of Margarita, by the absence of
an umbilicus.
CINGULA LATIOR.
Plate IV. Fig. 22.
C. testa minima, ovato-conica, laevi, pallida; anfractibus quatuor, convexis ;
sutura impressa ; spir^ quam apertura longiore ; anfractu postremo magno ; ap-
ertura sub-ovata 3 operculo corneo.
Shell minute, ovate-conic, smooth, pale horn -color ; whorls
more than four, convex ; suture much impressed ; spire three-
fifths of the length of the shell ; last whorl broad, larger than
the rest of the shell ; aperture ovate-orbicular, left margin
with a lamina ; operculum horny.
Length ,08 inch ; breadth ,05 inch ; divergence 60 degrees.
Habitat. Casco Bay ; taken from the stomach of a haddock
in the spring of 1841.
It is in the cabinet of J. W. Mighels.
Remarks. This species has a slight resemblance to O.
minuta, Totten, in the absence of sculpture ; but the spire is
shorter, more pointed, and its divergence is much greater,
giving a very different form to the shell. It is, moreover, a
much smaller shell. It appears also to be allied to Turbo
reticulatus, Montagu, but is distinct from that species in not
having as many turns by one and a half ; it differs, also, in
not being " strongly striate, both longitudinally and trans-
versely," and in not having the '' aperture thickened by a rib."
It has been found very rarely, usually in company with O.
semicostatus and C. arenajius, Mont.
Shells of New England. 49
CINGULA ARENARIA.
Plate IV. Fig. 24.
C. teslA minimd, sub-cylindracea, strialula, subplicata; spirA eonic4, elon-
gata; anfraclibus sex, convo.xis ; sutura impressu ; apertura sub-orbiculari, dim-
idium spirae aequante ; operculo corneo.
Syn. Tm^ho are?iarius, Montagu.
Shell minute, white, sub-cylindrical, sub-plicate longitudi-
nally, and minutely striate transversely ; spire elongated, coni-
cal ; whorls six, convex ; suture impressed ; aperture sub-
orbicular, half the length of the spire ; operculum horny.
Length ,10 inch ; breadth ,05 inch ; divergence 30^.
Habitat. Casco Bay, taken from the stomach of a haddock
in the summer of 1841.
But few specimens, have been found, which are in the Cab-
inet of J. W. Mighels.
CINGULA SEMICOSTATA.
Plate IV. Fig. 23.
C. testa minima, ovata ; anfractibus quinque, convexis, infra carinatis, suprk
plicalis ; spira conica ; sutura valde impressa ; apertura suborbiculari ; operculo
corneo.
Syn. Turbo semicostatus ? Montagu.
Shell very small, ovate-conical, of a ferruginous red color,
very thin ; whorls for the most part five, convex ; with longi-
tudinal ribs on the upper half, and revolving impressed striae
on the lower half ; last whorl carinate ; spire conical, obtuse ;
suture well impressed ; aperture nearly orbicular ; labrum thin,
sharp ; labium smooth ; operculum horny.
Length ,11 inch ; breadth ,7 inch ; divergence 45*^.
Cabinets of Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., Dr. Gould, Mons. Lar-
gillier, J. G. Anthony, and our own.
Habitat. Casco Bay ; taken from stomachs of haddock in
the summer of 1841.
Remarks. We offer this with some hesitation, as identical
with T. se?ni-costatus, Mont. If it should finally prove to be
distinct, we would propose to call it Cingula carinata.
7
60 Mighels^ and Adams^ Descriptions of
TURRITELLA COSTULATA.
Plate IV. Fig. 20.
T. testa albida ; transverse subtilissirne striatci ; anfractibus decern ; superiori-
bus sub-plicatis ; duobus ultimis sub-Iaevibus, ultimo sub-carinato; apertur^ sub-
ovata, anterius producta.
Shell whitish, translucent ; whorls nine or ten, nearly flat,
or very slightly convex ; suture well impressed ; last two
whorls nearly smooth ; the others longitudinally plicate, with
microscopic transverse striae ; last whorl sub-carinate ; aper-
ture rather less than one-fourth the length of the shell, snb-
ovate, produced anteriorly.
Length ,7 inch ; breadth .23 inch ; divergence, 22°.
Habitat. Casco Bay ; taken from the stomach of a had-
dock in the summer of 1841.
Remarks. Although only a single specimen has been ob-
tained, its characteristics are so obvious that we have not
hesitated to describe it. It has no analogue on our coast, to
our knowledge ; it, however, resembles a very much enlarged
T. interrupta, Totten. It is in the cabinet of J. W. Mighels.
TURRITELLA RETICULATA.
Plate IV. Fig. 19.
T. testcl turrito-subulata; anfractibus duodecim, convexis, longitudinaliter pli-
catis, transversim striatis; sutura valde impressa ; apertura sub-orbiculari.
Shell turreted, very slender, of a dingy white or ash color ;
whorls eleven to twelve, convex, distinctly, though somewhat
irregularly plicate longitudinally, with from three to five del-
icate, impressed, revolving striae on the five lower whorls ;
from and above the fifth whorl the transverse striae gradually
diminish in number, until they wholly disappear on the upper
two or three whorls. The whole surface of the shell has a
reticulated appearance. Suture well impressed ; aperture sub-
orbicular ; labrum thin ; operculum horny.
Length ,7 inch ; breadth ,2 inch ; divergence 20^.
Cabinets of Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., Dr. Gould, J. W. Mighels,
and C. B. Adams.
Shells of New England. 51
t
Habitat. Bay Chaleiir, in the Gulf of St. Lawrence ;
taken from the stomachs of cod fishes {Morrhua Americana ,
Storer,) by Mr. Foster, fisherman, in the summer of 1841, to
whom we are indebted for specimens.
Remarks. This species is alUed to T. erosa, Couth., but is
easily recognized by the longitudinal ribs, and by its more
slender form.
PLEUROTOMA VIOLACEA.
Plate IV. Fig. 21.
P. testa atro-purpureii, longitudinaliter sub-plicata, transverse striata ; anfrac-
tibus sex, ultimo supra carinato, plicis in medio evanescentibus, alteris medio
carjnatis; spira acuta; apertura angustata ; cauda brevi.
Shell small, of a blackish purple color, ovate, with a pale
brown epidermis, irregularly sub-plicate, with numerous faint
revolving striae decussating by the incremental striae ; whorls
six ; whorls of the spire carinate in the middle ; last whorl
shouldered by a continuation of the same carina, with the
plications terminating on its convexity ; spire acute, conic ;
suture distinct ; aperture narrow, rather less than half the
length of the shell ; labrum simple, sharp, regularly curved,
with the sinus at the extremity ; canal short, wide.
Length ,3 inch; breadth ,15 inch; divergence 40'-'.
Cabinets of Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., G. B. Sowerby, J. W.
Mighels, and C. B. Adams.
Habitat. Casco Bay ; found without the animal, at low-
water mark, in the summer of 1840, and subsequently in the
stomachs of haddock.
Remarks. This species is remotely allied to P. deciissata,
Couth. ; our shell, however, is always longer, aperture narrower,
and the sculpture less regular and distinct ; but it is especially
characterized by having the spiral carina far below the suture.
FASCIOLARIA LIGATA.
PI. IV. Fig. 17.
F. testa elongata, fusiformi,cras8a, rubro-fusca, transversim costulata ; anfrac-
tibus sex, convexis : spird acuminata ; sutura valde impressa ; aperturii ovato-
elongata ; labro crenato : columella plicis duabus.
S/iell elongated, fusiform, rather thick, of a reddish-brown
52 Mighels^ and Adams^ Descriptions of
color, when fresh, covered with a thin and almost perfectly
transparent epidermis ; whorls six, well rounded, and covered
with six or seven equidistant, revolving, thread-like ribs, with
grooves alternating ; suture well impressed ; spire regularly
tapering, pointed ; aperture oblong-oval, polished ; within of
a bright reddish-brown color ; canal rather narrow, nearly
straight ; labrum rather thin, crenulated by the ribs and
grooves ; cokmiella arcuated above the middle ; two distinct,
oblique, delicate folds above the commencement of the canal.
Length ,7 inch ; breadth ,3 inch ; divergence 45^^.
Cahinets of Dr. Gould, J. G. Anthony, J. W. Mighels, and
C. B. Adams.
Habitat. Mingan, in the Gulf of St. Lawrence ; taken
from the stomachs of cod-fishes, by Mr. Foster, fisherman, in
the summer of 1841.
Remarks. This remarkable and truly beautiful shell is not
very nearly allied to any species with which we are acquainted,
unless it be to that of F. fnsiformis, Valenc, from New Hol-
land. That species, however, is much larger than our shell,
is much less regularly and strongly ribbed, and has a tooth-
like process on the labium, of which our shell is destitute.
We suppose this to be the first and only species of the genus
that has ever been found on our coast.
FUSUS CANCELLATUS.
PI. IV. Fig. 18.
F. testa subulate, longitudinaliter plicata, transversa striata: anfractibus
septem, convexis : suturA ralde impress^ : spira acuminata } apice acuti ; aper-
tura sub-ovata } labro crenato.
Shell rather slender, turreted, with about twenty longitu-
dinal ribs, running a little obliquely to the left, crossed by
numerous transverse, revolving, raised lines, giving the shell
a cancellated appearance ; whorls seven, convex ; suture well
impressed ; spire gracefully tapering ; apex acute ; columella
slightly arched at the upper part ; aperture rather narrow,
sub-ovate ; canal short, straight, rather wider at the base ;
labrum thin, delicately crenated by the transverse stria?.
Shells of New England. 53
Length i-3 inch ; breadth I inch : divergence 22°.
Cabinets of Dr. Gouldj and J. W. Mighels.
Habitat. Casco Bay ; taken from the stomachs of haddock
in the summer of 1840. It must be regarded as very rare.
Remarks. This species is very nearly alhed to Murex
pnrpureus, Mont., (Turton Conch. Diet. 95,) but is distinct in
having a less number of volutions by three or four, by the
direction of the ribs, which are " obliquely to the right," in
M. purpureiis ; Montagu's shell is also described as " rugged,"
'' very rough," (fee, terms which will not apply to our shell ;
it is also said to be '^purple," which color is regarded by the
author as characteristic : our shell is variously colored, some
specimens being tinged with purple, others are white.
The following species of Fossil Shells occur at Westbrook,
in the vicinity of Portland, in company with Nucula Port-
landica^ Hk., in the post-tertiary formation, described by
Prof. Hitchcock in Vol. I. No. 3. of this Journal. Prof. H.
found one or two specimens of the Bulla. Dr. Wood, of this
city, was the first to discover the Nucula.
NUCULA ANTIQUA.
PJ. IV. Fig. 4.
N. testa parva, sub-trapeziformi, per-obliqua, transversa sulcatd : denlibus
posticis sexdecim, anticis sex : margine simplici.
Shell white, small, somewhat trapeziform, very in-equilate-
ral, covered with deep transverse sulci ; epidermis dark brown ;
teeth, sixteen posterior and six anterior to the beaks ; beaks
low, approximate ; anterior margin abrupt, posterior regularly
rounded, basal margin slightly curved, simple.
Length -^^ inch ; height |i inch ; breadth -i inch.
Cabinets of Boston Soc. Nat. Hist., J. W. Mighels, and C.
B. Adams.
Remarks. This species resembles N. proxima, Say., and
N. tenuis, Turton, but differs from both in the number and
54 Hentz's Descriptions of the
arrangement of the teeth, in the deep transverse sulci, and
in its length compared with its height and width. It is
scarce.
BULLA OCCULTA.
t
PI. IV. Fig. 11.
B. test^ parva, ovato-cylindric^ : spircl occultti: labro suprk elevato, medio
recto; apertura sub-angusta, infrti latci, rotundatd.
/S'/ieZ^ small, of a dingy white color, ovate-cylindrical, cover-
ed with very minute transverse striae, and with indistinct longi-
tudinal striae of growth ; spire concealed ; labrum extends a
little below the spire, nearly straight above the centre^ regu-
larly rounded below and at the base ; aperture narrow at the
upper part, rather broad at the base.
Length i inch ; breadth -^^ inch.
Cabinets of Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., Amherst and Middlebury
Colleges, J. W. Mighels, and C. B. Adams.
Remarks. If not identical with, this shell is the analogue
of, B. triticea, Couth. It however differs from that species in
being proportionably wider. It is very scarce.
Art. VL— descriptions AND FIGURES OF THE ARANEIDES
OF THE UNITED STATES. Br Nicholas Marcellus Hentz.
(Communicated July, 1841.)
The Publishing Committee think it proper to inform the
readers of this Journal, that the following article is the first of
a series on the Araneides of the United States, which has
been offered for publication, by the author, to the Boston So-
ciety of Natural History. These descriptions and figures will
be followed hereafter by others, and the whole will form an
illustrated monograph of all the Spiders observed by Professor
Hentz in various parts of this country, and will supply a want
Araneides of the United States. 55
which has been long felt in this department of our Natural
History.
Class. ARACHNIDES.
Order. Pulmonaria.
Family. Araneides.
Section. Tetrapiieumones.
Genus. Mygale. Walckenaer.
Characters. Eyes eighty placed near together ^ on the ante-
rior edge of the cephalothorax^ in two roios, variously curved ;
fang of the cheliceres articulated doimnuard ; palpi inserted
on the extremity of the niaxillce ; feet 4. 1. 2. 3. or 4. 1. 3. 2.
Observation. The distinction between Mygale and Ole-
TERA is artificial, as a slight elongation of the maxillae of My-
gale would place the palpi at the side ; witness Mygale ^
nnicolor.
1. MYGALE TRUNCATA.
Description. Piceous ; cephalothorax with a curved im-
pression behind the middle, cheliceres (mandibulge) terminated
by several points above the fang, hairy ; abdomen cylindrical,
suddenly truncated at the end, and callous at that place, with
concentric grooves and six circular impressions ; thighs more
or less rufous at base ; a white membrane between the joints.
Feet 4. 1. 3. 2.
Observations. This spider dwells like other species of this
subgenus in cylindrical cavities in the earth. Though many
specimens were found, I never saw the lid described by au-
thors as closing the aperture of its dwelling. The very sin-
gular formation of its abdomen, which is as hard as leather
behind, and which forms a perfect circle, induces me to believe
that it closes, with that part, its dwelling, instead of with
a lid, when in danger.
Habitat. Alabama.
Fig. 1. Mygale Iruncata. a. Arrangement of thn eyeg. b. Trophi. c. Side
view of the ipider. d. Hole in which it resides, c. Respective length of the
legs.
56 Hentz^s Description of the
2. MYGALE SOLSTITIALIS.
Description. Deep black ; cephalothorax with two inden-
tations, cheliceres moderately large ; abdomen with several
impressions above, and four yellow spots underneath ; mem-
brane between the joints white ; third pair of legs with the
third joint short and crooked ; feet hairy, 4. 1. 2. 3. A large
species.
Observations. One specimen only (a male,) was found in
July, wandering on the ground. The character, derived from
the third pair of legs, does not seem to be a mere sexual dis-
tinction, as Mygale Carolinensis^ the next species, has the
same peculiarity, and the description was taken from a female.
Habitat. Alabama.
Fig. 2. Mygale solstitialis. a. The eyes. b. The Trophi. c. The abdo-
men viewed underneath.
3. MYGALE CAROUNENSIS.
Description. Brownish, very glossy ; cephalothorax with
two slight impressions near the base ; abdomen blackish, not
glossy ; third joint of the third pair of legs very short and
crooked ; feet 4. 1. 3. 2.
Observations. This species was communicated to the au-
thor by the late Mr. Levi Andrews, of Chapel Hill, North
Carolina, a promising young naturalist, snatched by consump-
tion from his numerous friends, and to the memory of whom
this tribute is due. The character derived from the third pair
of legs is not a sexual one, as this was a female, and the de-
scription of Mygale solstitialis was taken from a male,
which has the same character.
Habitat. North Carolina.
Fig. 3. Mygale Carolinensis. a. The Eyes.
4. MYGALE GRACILIS.
Description. Rufous; cephalothorax somewhat six-sided,
long and narrow ; abdomen plumbeous, two nipples very long ;
feet long, hairy, penultimate joint of the anterior pair with a
notch ; feet 4. 1.2. 3.
Araneides of the United States. 57
Observations. This spider, hitherto always found in mid-
winter, under stones or on the ground, is probably not the
male of Mygale Carolinensis ; but the peculiarity of its first
pair of legs, is, no doubt, a sexual character. The same joint
of the feet of the male of my Dysdera bicolor, is not only
bent, but has powerful prongs and bristles, which nature has
given him as a defence, or as the means of grasping the
female.
Habitat. Alabama.
Fig. 4. Mygale gracilis, a. The eyes. b. The right palpus, with the maxilla.
5. MYGALE ? UNICOLOR.
Description. Deep rufous ; cephalothorax depressed in the
middle, with two impressions, cheliceres very large ; abdo-
men smooth ; third pair of legs with short, very thick joints ;
feet 4 1. 2. 3.
Observations. This species is very distinct from any oth-
er, particularly by the manner in which its palpi are inserted.
Were the maxillab' extended a little more at their extremity,
this spider should be placed in the sub-genus Oletera,
which follows. The specimen, from which this description
was taken, (a female,) was turned up by the plough, in a
field, in the month of May. The manner in which the spi-
ders belonging to Mygale and Oletera live, hidden under
groi:nd, and probably issuing out only at night, prevents our
becc ming acquainted with their habits. I doubt whether the
males ever dwell in tubular habitations. Much remains yet
to be done to complete the history of this genus and that of
the next.
Habitat. Alabama.
Fig. 5. Mygale ? unicolor. a. The eyes. h. The trophi.
8
58 Storer^s Descriptions
Art. VII.— descriptions OF TWO NEW SPECIES OF FISHES.
By D. Humphreys Storer, M. D. (Read April 21st, 1841.)
A few weeks since, through the kind attention of Mr.
Moses Williams, Jr. of Roxbury, a member of this Society,
I received from Lake Winnipissiogee, a beautiful fresh speci-
men of Lota, a description of which I beg leave to offer.
Lota Brosmiana.
Plate V. Fig. 1.
The specimen, which was a female, was twentyseven
inches in length ; the length of the head was five and a half
inches. The body is very broad in front of the dorsal fin ;
it becomes much compressed on the sides back of the first
dorsal, and tapers to the caudal fin. Its general color is yel-
lowish; the back, between the back of the head and the
origin of the dorsal fin, exhibits a reddish tint : the top of
the head and the opercula are fuliginous, the latter exhibiting
golden reflections in their centre. The body beneath is
I white. The whole body is perfectly smooth, covered by in-
numerable cup-shaped depressions, like that of the Zoarchus
anguillaris, and like that species is lubricated by a viscid
secretion.
The depth of the body at the base of the pectorals, is three
and a half inches ; its greatest depth is four and a half inches ;
its depth at the vent is three and a half inches.
The greatest breadth of the head, across the opercula, is
five inches. Its breadth across the eyes, is three and a quar-
ter inches. The snout is blunt. The top of the head is flat.
The distance between the eyes, is less than two inches. The
eyes are circular, one half inch in diameter ; the nostrils are
double — the posterior, half of an inch in front of the eyes ;
the anterior, which is tubular, and furnished with a cirrus
two lines in length, is less than lialf of an inch in front of
this. The opercula are nearly two inches in length.
of two New Fishes. 59
The vertical gape of the mouth, is two inches in extent ;
the jaws are equal ; the jaws, palatine bones, and pharynx
are armed with numerous fine teeth, placed like those of a
card. The tongue is large, smooth and white. Suspended
from the chin is a cirrus one and a half inches in length.
The lateral line commences above the operculum, and
very gradually curving downwards, does not reach the middle
of the body, until beyond the middle of the dorsal fin.
The dorsal, pectoral, anal, and caudal fins are colored, as
well as the sides of the fish, with bluish blotches, and are
margined with black. The ventral fins are white beneath,
and fulisinous above.
The first dorsal fin is situated eleven inches back of the
snout ; it is two inches long, one inch high, the posterior por-
tion barely higher than the anterior.
The second dorsal fin commences half an inch back of
the preceding ; it is less than an inch high at its commence-
ment, and is half an inch high at its posterior extremity.
This fin is continued nearly to the base of the tail.
The pectoral fins are situated directly behind and beneath
the posterior angle of the operculum ; they measure three and
a half inches across, when extended, and are rounded at their
posterior extremity ; they are an inch deep at their base.
The ventral fins are situated in front of the pectorals ; the
rays are fleshy ; the first ray is an inch long, the second ray
is continued an inch beyond this ; the remainder of the rays
are shorter than the first ray.
The anal fin commences half an inch back of the vent,
and terminates on a line with the second dorsal fin ; the rays
are of equal height throughout. The vent is large.
The caudal fin is three and a half inches in length ; when
expanded, it is three and a half inches high, and rounded at
its extremity.
The weight of this specimen was five and a half pounds.
B 7; D. 10—71; P. 16; V. 6; A. 68; C. 34.
In the oesophagus of this fish I found a blade of grass, and
the stomach contained numerous bones of a fish, too far di-
gested to be determined ; a large quantity of viscid mucus
60 Storer^s Descriptions
enveloped these bones. In the intestines were several pellets,
apparently of soft mud.
I received a specimen of this species a year since, from a
pond in Alexandria, N. H. It was not, however, in a proper
state for description. There, as well as in Lake Winnipissi-
ogee, it is known by the common name of Cusk. As it
might readily be mistaken for that fish, by a cursory observer,
I have based my specific name upon that genus.
I learn from Mr. Henry Bryant, of this Society, that the
inhabitants around Lake Winnipissiogee affirm that this fish
was originally taken from the sea and placed in that sheet of
water. I should doubt the correctness of these remarks, from
the circumstance, that this species having ever been consider-
ed a Cusk, an inhabitant of the sea, and the sea only, they
drew the inference that it must have been transferred ; not
considering that the Lake had an outlet, and that its waters
passed by a river of the same name into the Merrimack, and
thence directly to the sea : the dams and various other ob-
structions which have been thrown across the Merrimack
within a few years, would undoubtedly, at the present time, as
perfectly check their progress from the sea, as they are known
to have impeded the advance of the salmon ; but at an earlier
period, they did not exist — and for centuries, perhaps, this
species may have dwelt in the Lake.
Two species only of Lota, the Ling and the Burbot, are
found among the Fishes of Great Britain, The latter '^ lives
permanently in fresh water, and prefers slow running rivers,"
but it is found in only a few of the rivers. I know of but
two species besides that I have now described, which are
found in this country. One of them, the maculosa, first
observed by Le Sueur, in Lake Erie, is found, according to
Richardson, " in every river and lake from Canada to the
western extremity of the continent." Another, which he
calls cojnpressa, Le Sueur received from Northampton, on
the Connecticut river. A specimen of this latter species, from
the Ashuelot river, a branch of the Connecticut, I presented
to the Cabinet of this Society, several years since.
There are many points of resemblance between this fish
of two New Fishes. 61
and the species taken by Le Sueur in 1816, and described by
him in the first vokime of the " Journal of the Academy of
Natural Sciences,"' under the name of Gadiis maculosiis in
1817, and in the " Memoires du Museum d'Histoire Naturelle,
t. y. p. 159," for 1819, and also there figured, under the name
of Molva maculosa. It is very evident that that figure was
drawn from a preserved specimen, which had lost its original
proportions by the process of drying. The difference which
exists between the Lota maculosa and the species I have
now described, may at once be recognised, by examining the
plates of each species contained in this number of our Journal.
In the first number of the '' American Monthly Magazine and
Critical Review," for 1818, Dr. Mitchill refers to a species
which he calls Gadiis lacustris. In the course of his re-
marks, he states that this "appears to him to be the same
fish" that •' Le Sueur found in Lake Erie, and has figured,"
&c. He supposes a fish which is found in Sebago Pond,
Maine, and called there the Sea-cusk, to be the identical
species. Never having seen a Lota from the last locality, I
am unable to decide what the fish referred to may be. Dr.
MitchilPs Gadus lacustris is evidently the Gadus maculosus
of Le Sueur, and he infers, without having ever seen the
species, that the Lota from Maine, is the same fish.
Etheostoma Olmstedi.
Plate Y. Fig. 2.
The beautiful little species here described, was found at
Hartford, by Charles H. Olmsted, Esq. President of the Hart-
ford Natural History Society. He is a very accurate observer,
and is striving to advance the science which has been so long
and so inexcusably neglected among us. I take great pleas-
ure in associating his name with this species.
Length of the fish, which is of a cylindrical form, three
inches. Color yellowish, marked upon the back and sides witli
reddish brown blotches, which, when looked upon from either
extremity of the fish, resemble interrupted longitudinal band-,
62 Storer^s Descriptions of two new Fishes.
through the largest of which passes the lateral line ; when
the fish is examined from above, these markings present more
or less distinct transverse bands upon the back, which are
situated at the origin, the middle, and the termination of
both the dorsal fins.
Length of the head five lines : flattened back of the eyes.
Eyes less than a line in diameter.
Preoperculum golden ; the upper part of the operculum is
scaly, and it terminates in a sharp spine. A narrow, deep
black band runs from the tip of the upper jaw to the anterior
inferior angle of the eye, and a second band passes upwards
from the lower anterior angle of the preoperculum to the
middle of the lower edge of the eye, and thence to the upper
edge of the orbit, interrupted by the globe of the eye.
The teeth in the jaAvs are very minute.
The first dorsal fin commences one line back of the oper-
cular spine ; it is almost colorless, half an inch long, three
lines high, rounded posteriorly.
The second dorsal fin is seven lines long ; three lines high ;
the extremities of the rays are bifurcated ; the rays being
crossed by transverse reddish lines, present a very pretty ap-
pearance.
The pectoral fin is light colored, and spotted like the dor-
sals ; one line long, and five lines high.
The ventral fins are situated directly below the opercular
spine ; they are one line long, five lines high, and are variega-
ted like the second dorsal fin.
The anal fin, which is of the color of the abdomen, com-
mences back of the second dorsal ; it is three lines long and
two lines high.
The caudal fin is in color similar to the second dorsal ; it is
two lines deep at its base, and is five lines long.
The fins are rayed as follows :
D. 9—13 ; P. 15 ; V. 6 ; A. 11 ; C. 15.
Teschemacher^s New Rafflesia. 63
Art. VIII.— on A NEW SPECIES OF RAFFLESIA, FROM MA-
NILLA. By J. E. Teschemacher. (Read 16th June, 1841.)
Plate YL
Having just received from Manilla, preserved in spirit, sev-
eral buds of that rare and singular parasite, Rafflesia, which,
on examination appeared to difier essentially from the species
hitherto described from Java and Sumatra, I beg to offer to
the Society the following account, with a drawing.
The specimens were gathered in Basei, a district of the
province of Leite, on the same spot visited by Mr Cuming,
for the purpose of finding this plant, during his late excursion
to the Philippine Islands. Not having seen any description of
this plant by him, in the Scientific Journals, I am uncertain
of the result of his visit ; and although I propose the specific
name of Manilana for this species, I would readily yield it to
any other he may wish it to retain.
The only accounts of Rafflesia. to which I have access are,
that of R. Arnoldi, from Sumatra, in the 13th volume of the
Transactions of the Linnean Society of London, and that
given by Sir W. J. Hooker, in the Companion to the Botan-
ical Magazine, of R. Patma detected by Dr Blume, in Noussa
Kambangan, a small island on the coast of Java, and described
and figured by him in the Flora Javce.
The column of one of ray specimens was sent by itself
from Manilla, and of two others I have dissected buds ; the
larger by a vertical cut, the section shown in the figure, the
second, a smaller specimen, by the removal of the whole of
the envelopes, exhibiting the naked column with its processes,
edge, anthers, &c. The column from Manilla, being dissected
when fresh, was considerably dried when placed in spirits. Its
form and several parts are therefore not very distinctly retained,
but the number of anthers and several other pai'ticulars are
clear enough.
The largest bud of those I dissected is two and one-half
inches in diameter, and arises from a cup three-fourths of an
64 ^ Tescheinachcr^ s New Rafflesia.
inch in deptli, the outer part of which is formed of the same
substance as the external bark of the root on which it is par-
asitic, and which is evidently of the same structure as that
of the root of Cissus augustifolia on which the R. Arnoldi
was found.
It is probable that the smaller size alone would sufficiently
distinguish this from the last mentioned species, the buds of
which are stated to be one foot in diameter ; because, although
the respective age of these buds is not known, yet every part
is so perfect in the buds I dissected, even to minute and glan-
dular hairs, that it is not probable they would have been long
in this state before opening.
There are apparently in this, five series of bracteae ; the mid-
dle one, at its origin, about three-eighths of an inch in thick-
ness, or three times the thickness of the two outer and the
two inner series. These bracteae are imbricated over, and com-
pletely envelop the perianth ; they are marked by prominent
veins, precisely as in R. Arnoldi ; the tube of the perianth
originates on a line with the central row of bracteae below the
two interior rows, and although in the bud at its upper part, it
is undivided, yet the lines of its divisions, when expanded,
are clearly discernable. Tlie interior of these divisions of
the perianth is marked by tubercles of various forms, as in the
other species.
The column has a convex disc, surrounded by a raised
edge ; on the surface of this column are eleven processes,
rather more than one-eighth of an inch in height, differing
from each other slightly in size and form, the summits of
which are entire and hispid, the hairs much resembling pistil-
lary projections. One of these processes is in the centre, the
other ten arranged around it at about an equal distance be-
tween it and the raised edge.
The anthers, which are of the same form, with pores and
cells like those of the other species described, are ten in num-
ber, and are also suspended from the under side of the upper
edge of the column, in open cavities formed in the lower part
or base of it ; both edges of the open part of these cavities
are covered with hairs resembling those on the tips of the
Teschemacher^ s New Rafflesia. 65
processes on the disc, and that part of the tube of the perianth
opposite to these openings is studded with thick, capillary hairs,
each terminated by what is apparently a glandular knob.
Down the centre of the column are lines, evidently bundles
of vascular tissue, which pass through the substance of the
cup into the root of the cissus ; all the rest of the interior is
cellular.
I could not perceive any very distinct appearance, in the
bud, of an annular process at the mouth of the tube of the
perianth, although it is not improbable, from various marks,
that such a ring may be developed when the flower is open.
Ther(3 is no appearance, in any of these three specimens,
of the cavities exhibited in the figure of R. Patma, which
contain the spores ; on this part of the structure of Rafflesia,
therefore, these specimens from Manilla do not throw any far-
ther light. They are probably male flowers. Of R. Hors-
fieldii, which, when expanded, is only three inches diameter,
I have not seen any description.
I close this paper with the following comparisons of the
two species described, and of that which I call, at present, R.
Manillana.
R. Arnoldi. Bud, before expansion, one foot diameter, sessile
on root of Cissus angustifoUa^ the under side of its base reticulate ;
disc of column convex, processes on surface forty to sixty, close
together, divided at the summits, which are hispid ; anthers forty to
sixty, with numerous celts, and furnished with pores at summits ;
a moniliform cord at base of column ; interior of perianth covered
with variously formed tubercles.
R. Patma. When expanded, two feet diameter, arising directly
from the root of the Cissus ; disc of column concave, processes on
surface of disc numerous, of a pyramidal form, the summits of which
are entire and hispid ; lower part of tube of perianth and column glab-
rous, interior of perianth covered with variously formed tubercles ;
anthers with cells and pores ; number not mentioned ; no moniliform
cord at base of column ; antheriferous flower containing cavities
filled with spores, hence hermaphrodite.
R. Manillana. Bud, before expansion, two and one half inches
diameter, arising from a cup three-fourths of an inch high, formed
by the thickened bark of the root of the Cissus ; the bracteoe origi-
9
66 Couthouy on Coral Formations
nating from the inner side of the upper edge of the cup ; no appear-
ance of reticulation under the base ; disc of column convex, processes
on surface eleven, one of which is in the centre, the rest arranged
around it, their summits entire and hispid ; lower part of tube of per-
ianth studded with thick glandular hairs ; anthers ten, with cells and
pores, as in the other species ; no moniliform cord at base of column ;
sporiferous cavities not apparent, flowers examined probably male ;
interior of perianth covered with various formed tubercles.
Art. IX.— remarks UPON CORAL FORMATIONS IN THE
PACIFIC; WITH SUGGESTIONS AS TO THE CAUSES OF
THEIR ABSENCE IN THE SAME PARALLELS OF LATI-
TUDE ON THE COAST OF SOUTH AJNIERICA. By Joseph
i*. CouTHour. (Read December 15, 1841.)
Among the various geological phenomena which at once
bear record of the past changes in the structure, conditions
and climate of our planet, and indicate the alterations at this
moment slowly and silently, but effectually going forward ;
few have given rise to more speculation, than the countless
coral isles and reefs, which stud the equatorial seas, especially
in the Pacific and Indian Oceans.
It is my intention, in this communication to, throw together
a few observations upon this class of rocks, and such correl-
ative topics as may present themselves as I proceed. With
regard to the latter, no fixed system or order of introduction
will be pursued, but they will be taken up at random, as
suggested by the main subject.
The vastness of the region over which these singular for-
mations are scattered ; the evidence they afford, by analogy,
of the existence, in former epochs, of a more uniformly warm
temperature of the earth than has pi evailed since its present or-
ganization — in the fact that such rocks now form only in the
more heated parts of the ocean, while their fossil types and
analogues extend even into the arctic regions — the great den-
sity of the beds of coral, exhibited in some of the uplifted
islands - — the light thrown by an examination of them, on the
in the Pacific y S^c. 67
origin of the wide tracts of chalk and limestone found in vari-
ous parts of the globe — the apparent insigniiicance and in-
sufficiency of the tiny architects that construct these siiigular
edifices when compared with the stupendous results of their
labor — all these are points which have long directed to them
the researches of the geologist, and given rise to a variety of
theories upon the mode in which such innumerable masses
of coral have risen from the bottom of -'the vasty deep."
The inaccurate statements of early voyagers, relative to the
rapidity with which coral rose to the surface, seemed to be in
a measure corroborated by the accounts brought home by
almost every vessel trading to these regions, of new reefs
springing up as by magic, in the most frequented tracks.
Many were in consequence, induced to regard the coral seas
as 3ontaining the rudiments of a new continent, which,
silently but rapidly, rearing itself above the waste of waters,
xVar. destined, at no very remote period, geologically speaking,
to equal in magnitude either of those now existing.
Later, and more systematic examination, however, has
shown that such an inference was deduced from very erroneous
promises. By observations upon the depths of channels in
well known harbors, and the level of reefs in their vicinity ;
by the fact that not the slightest increase of the coral is per-
ceptible on or around anchors and guns cast upon a reef from
a stranded vessel, and known to have remained undisturbed for
more than half a century — and by similar means of arriving
at an approximation to the truth ; it is now ascertained that
the growth of coral is exceedingly slow.* The lapse of many
* I am inclined to believe that llie increment of the branchino; corals, or at
leas', of certain species, is much more rapid than that of the sessile or encrusting
genera; having observed such shells as Pecten, Lima, Plicatulu nnd Pedum, of.
an inch and a half in length, completely overgrown by the Polyparia, while
thei • colors and internal polish were scarcely impaired. These were not lodged
as ve frequently see Arcae and Mytili, in accidental cavities, but for the most
part imbedded at the divergence of the branches. There are specimens exem-
plifvino' this, now in my possession, and also in the Society's collection, in which
the branches are enlarged, and sometimis deflected by their envelopment of
thefce foreign bodies. The rate of increase in such cases, might be approximately
ascertained, by experiments upon the time requisite for shells of this kind to
attain a size equal to the imbedded specimens, which it is very likely were
lodf^ed upon the corals soon after their expulsion from the parent shell.
68 Couthouy on Coral Formations
centuries would be requisite for the construction of a solitary
reef, and myriads of ages must pass before the lateral growth
of the thousands of scattered islets and shoals could extend
itself so widely as to unite them all in one continuous body.
That so many new islands in those seas, were and are still
discovered by almost every navigator, need not excite our sur-
prise if we consider their small extent, in general rendering
them mere specks in the ocean, which, together with their
slight elevation, prevents their being visible more than a few
miles under the most favorable circumstances. By day they
are often concealed by a veil of mist and cloud, and I have
myself passed within three miles of one, whose existence,
owing to this cause, would never have been suspected had we
not previously been well assured of it. During the night es-
pecially, in consequence of their being surrounded by deep,
blue water, vessels may, and do, frequently pass within a very
small distance of such perilous spots without receiving the
slightest warning of such proximity.
On this subject the facts stated by intelligent, though un-
scientific observers, are entitled to our respect and considera-
tion, whatever may be our opinion of the inferences they
draw from them.
The Rev. John Williams,* late missionary from England
to the South Seas, had bestowed much attention upon the sub-
ject of coral formations, among which he spent about sixteen
years of his valuable life. In his " Narrative of Missionary
Enterprise in the South Seas," p. 49, (1st Am. Ed.) he ob-
serves, "the rapidity of the coral growth has been egregi-
ously over-rated and over-stated." " You seldom find a piece
of branching madrepore, of brain, or of any other coral, how-
ever deep in the water, above two or three feet in height."
And again on p. 50, alluding to the formation of new
islands, he remarks, " I have traditions of the natives on al-
most every subject, especially of their former navigators, where-
in every island which has subsequently been discovered within
* Mr W. was barbarously murdered in November, 1839, by the cannibals at
Errumanga, one of the New Hebrides, while endeavoring to open a communi-
cation with them, for the object of introducing some native teachers from Samoa.
in the Pacijic, c^c. 69
a thousand miles, is named ; but in no one of them is there
any mention of, or reference to, a newly formed island. I
am familiar with one tradition in which there is a genealogi-
cal account of the reigning family for thirty generations,
which is equally silent ujxju the subject of new formations."
In conversation with Mr W. at Upoln, one of the Samoan
or Navigator Group, but a few days prior to his death, he
stated that on the reef bordering that island, there were par-
ticular clumps of coral, known to the fishermen by names de-
rived from either some particular configuration, or tradition
attached to them, and handed down from generation to gene-
ration from time immemorial. By careful inquiry among the
natives, he had satisfied himself that these had undergone no
perceptible alteration since the earliest mention of them. The
testimony of the missionaries, and other foreigners, at the
Tahitian and Hawaiian Islands, some of whom had resided
during nearly forty years within sight of the reefs, confirmed,
as far as it went, the remarks of Mr Williams. Did the limits
of this communication permit, many other facts might be
adduced, corroborative of the evidence given by these persons
of the extremely slow increase of the living corals ; but the
point is perhaps now too generally conceded, to render farther
details necessary in an article like the present. In connection
with this subject of growth, a few remarks, however, upon
some of the theories respecting recent coral formations, which
have found supporters among men of science, may not be
misplaced.
It was at one time a very generally received opinion, founded
chiefly upon the circumstance that a fathomless ocean laved
the very margin of the reefs ; that the coral animals com-
menced their labors at an illimitable depth, and, governed by
a certain instinct or impulse, toiled upward to the light, giving
to their sub-marine structures the peculiar form they exhibit,
through the same instinct teaching them that it was the best
adapled to afford shelter from the violence of wave and tem-
pest.
Thus, the windward portion of the reef was supposed to be
that first elevated, presenting a perpendicular face to the
70 Couthouy on Coral Formations
breakers, and shelving away on the opposite side. Protected
by this wall, it was thought the polypes next constructed their
edifices at some distance to leeward, which at first rose in a
series of detached masses arranged in a somewhat circular form.
But gradually the intermediate spaces were filled up and a con-
tinuous chain was thus formed, enclosing a deep, bowl-shaped
lagoon, which, in process of time was also filled up by the
stony dwellings of the polypes.
Fragments of coral, heaped up by wind and sea, and cement-
ed together, formed a ridge of two or three feet elevation
above the level of the surrounding ocean. Multitudes of
marine birds frequenting the rock to deposit their eggs — the
exuvia of crabs and shell-fish on which they fed, the sedi-
ments left in hollows by the heavy and frequent rains ; grad-
ually prepared a light soil for the reception of the iev^ seeds
wafted thither by favoring currents, or brought by stray land
birds — these sprang up, and by their subsequent decay added
continually to the depth of soil, — a single cocoa-nut perhaps,
cast upon the beach, germinated, and arriving at maturity, its
seeds in a few years were scattered over the island, which
was then fitted for the abode of man.
That this is the manner in which the once sterile and
weather-beaten ledge of rocks has been here gradually cover-
ed with the most luxuriant vegetation, there can be no ques-
tion.* Perhaps no more striking proof of it can be adduced,
* An instance of the rapidity with which even the largest plants multiply
and spread themselves over the soil in these regions, is afforded in Christmas
Island, an extensive lagoon island, situated between about 1° 40' and 2° 10'
North lat. and 157° 10' and 157° uO' West long. By the statement of Capt.
Cook, who discovered it in 1777, ''on the cocoa-nut trees upon the island, (the
number of which did not exceed thirty,) very little fruit was found ; and in
general, what was found was either not fully grown, or had the juice salt or
brackish ; so that a ship touching there must expect nothing but birds, fish and
turtle, and of these an abundant supply may be depended upon."
In 1837, the English whale ship Baton was wrecked on this reef, and her
Captain, George Benson, with his crew of twentythree persons, remained up-
wards of seven months on the island, from which they were finally taken by
an American whaler. According to Capt. Benson, there were several large
groves of cocoa-nut trees, one of them containing between six and seven hun-
dred, and the whole number exceeded two thousand, bearing excellent fruit,
although many trees had been cut down by the whalers occasionally touching
in the Pacific, 6^c. " 7
than the fact that the small number of species of plants found
on these islands previous to the visits of man, are all those
whose seeds would bear this mode of transportation, without
injury to the germinating principle, and belong to an almost
equal number of orders, and sometimes of classes, whose
primeval soils were widely remote from each other.
But there is nothing whatever in the appearance of the
reefs, confirmatory of the supposition that the windward por-
tion was constructed anteriorly to the opposite one. They
have both precisely the same level, present similar inequalities
of surface, and an equally perpendicular wall facing the sea.
'The only material difference is, that the elevated fragmentary
beach is in general, as might be expected, first formed and
highest on the windward side.
But even this is not invariably the case. At Minerva or
Clermont Tonnerre Island, which is situated on the southeast-
ern skirts of the Dangerous Archipelago, in about 18^ 26'
South lat. and 136° 30' West long., and whose greatest extent
is from E. S. E. to W. N. W., or nearly in the direction of the
S. E. trade wind ; the northern shore is the more elevated one.
The southern or windward side of the lagoon is here bounded
by a low, naked line of reef rock, and several small, detached
islets. At Ocean Island, in lat. 28° 22' North, long. 178° 30'
West, near the limits of the N. E. trade wind in the Pacific,
the highest points, and the only ones in fact above water, are
a ridge some three miles long and no where above ten feet
high, at the S. E. extremity of the reef: and two knolls
about a mile and a quarter in circuit, on the South skirt of
the laa:oon. The reef extends from the S. E. ridse, about
eieht and a half miles to the N. W. in form of an oval, whose
shorter diameter is six miles from N. E. to S. W.
On no part of this extensive reef, is there any thing to show
that one portion of it is of higher antiquity than the rest, and
it is on all sides washed by an unfathomable ocean. It can-
not surprise us that while so little was known of the habits
there for supplies. Tlie turtles, however, appear to liave been rlriven away by
ihe intruders, as he caught but about twenty, of small size, during his long
slay ; whereas Capt. Cook procured thnc hundred during his brief visit.
73 Couthouy on Coital Formations
of the saxigenous polypes, reefs of this nature were supposed
to be raised by tliem from a depth Uke that found outside.
But later and more careful investigations of their habits, have
undeniably proved the incorrectness of this opinion. By the
concurrent testimony of all recent observers, it is now shown,
that instead of inhabiting such profound depths, the reef-
building polypes require for their development and support, a
certain degree of light and heat, not penetrating lower than
one hundred and twenty, or at the utmost, one hundred and
thirty feet in any part of the ocean. Some indeed have as-
serted less than half that depth to be the limit of growth, but
this can only be true of particular tracts, as I shall have oc-
casion to show in another place.
Another theory, and one obtaining the sanction of some
distinguished names among the geologists of Europe, was
suggested by the circumstance of nearly all the coral islands
having a lagoon of variable depth in their centre. From this
peculiarity it was conjectured that the reefs rested upon the
summit of extinct sub -marine volcanoes, whose craters were
represented by the lagoon.
It cannot be denied that this hypothesis presents many
plausible features, but still there are some knotty and stubborn
facts for which it fails satisfactorily to account. It is true,
that a knowledge of such enormous craters as those on the
summit of Mauna Loa in Hawaii, and Haleakala in Maui,*
which are estimated at twentyfour and twenty seven miles in
circuit, might in a measure quiet the doubts of those to whom
the great extent of some of these lagoons, appeared the chief
obstacle in the way of assuming their crateric basis. Yet
although it may be possible that some of the lagoon islands
* Hawaii and iMaul are the two principal islands of the Hawaiian Group. The
great f rater on Mauna Loa, here epoken of, is on the very summit of the moun-
tain, which is little less than fourteen thousand feet high. Jt must not be con-
founded with that of Ka lua Pele, (.r Kilauea. spoken of by Lord Byron, Ellis,
t^lewart, and others. This latter is on the S. E. flank of the mountain, about four
thousand feet above sea level, and is at present in full activity. No signs of
action, other than a faint smoke, have been perceived in the terminal crater for
about fifteen years. The great crater of Haleakala, or " The House of the
Sun," also a terminal one, at an elevation of nearly eleven thousand feet, has
been extinct from a period beyond that reached by the traditious of the islanders.
in the Pacific, (^c. 73
having a circuit of twenty, forty, or even eighty miles, are
thus based ; it is rather startling to assert that such a multitude
of submarine craters, and of such varied and anomalous con-
figuration, were grouped together in so small a space as the
coral archipelago of Polynesia ; not to mention the still great-
er number that, if this theory is correct, must have existed in
other parts of the Pacific, and in the Indian Ocean, where
similar formations prevail to a great extent. There is, I be-
lieve, nothing analogous to this hypothetical huddling togeth-
er of craters in any of the present volcanic regions of the
globe. It is true, that the Galapagos have been estimated to
contain from fifteen to eighteen hundred craters, of various
magnitude, but nine-tenths perhaps of these, are rather to be
regarded as funnels, or chimnies, composed of scoria, or gravel
and ashes, which are constantly crumbling in and becoming
obliterated merely through the action of the weather ; and
could not have been formed under water at all. It is indeed
very probable that at some remote period of the past, the
agency of internal fires may have been much more powerfully
manifested than at a later day, and the vents therefore much
more numerous then than since the earth received its present
form. But admitting that submarine volcanoes once existed
in the number and limited space required by this theory ;
there are still one or two points that would seem to be fatal
to it, though they appear to have been overlooked by its
advocates.
From the peculiar adaptation of structure in every other
class of animated beings to certain habits and conditions,
analogy would certainly lead us to the conclusion, that the
organization of creatures flourishing so luxuriantly near the
surface, could hardly be capable of supporting the great pres-
sure resulting from ^such a column of water as would rest
upon them at profound depths. But besides this objection,
there was the improbability that beings so frail could exist
equally well, amid temjjeratures so widely ditferent as those
of the surface of the ocean and its bed or any considerable
depth. In the parallel of 16° South, where the surface tem-
perature was 82° Fahr., that of six hundred feet below it
10
74 Couthouy on Coral Formations
was shown by a registering thermometer to be but 56°, and
at nine hundred feet but 48°. This experiment was made
by myself, in the open ocean. At the same depths upon
soundings, the difference would, I doubt not, have been still
greater, but not having actually ascertained this by experi-
ment, I cannot speak positively on this point.
According to the statements of those zealous naturalists,
MM. Quoy and Gaimarcl, the result of their observations during
the first voyage of the Astrolabe, was, that the growth of the
more solid corals was limited to a depth of five or six fathoms.*
In fixing this limit, however, 1 think they have not suffi-
ciently taken into consideration the variations of temperature
at small depths, produced by accidental causes, and that in
the tropics, where the sea is warmed to a considerable depth
by the presence of large bodies of land, these corals may
flourish considerably lower.
In approaching the island of Tutuila, one of the Samoan
group, I remember suddenly coming from deep water upon a
shelf, upon which there were but thirteen fathoms. This
ledge, distant about two and a half miles from the coast,
which was very steep, was profusely covered with coral. The
surface temperature was here 81°, and that of the bottom 76°,
* The work of Q,, and G. not being accessible here, I trust of necessity to
memory, in quoting the depth assigned hy them, as the lowest limit for the
growth of the coral in any considerable quantity.
It is well perhaps to notice here, that wherever, in this communication, cer-
tain depths and temperatures are spoken of, as essential to the growth of the
polypes, I refer only to the reef-constructing genera, and more particularly to
those whose Polyparia form hemispheral masses, broad, lamellar incrustations,
or solid palmate clusters. Some of the arborescent corals have been found in
extra-tropical seas, in very low temperatures, and depths far exceeding those
here assigned as the limits of the saxigenous polypes. There is now, or should
be, in the collection at Washington, a small species of Madrepora, dredored on
the coast of Patagonia, from a depth of eighty fathoms; and Dr. Gould has
lately received specimens of another from our coast, in the vicinity of Portland,
M;iine. I have also picked up specimens on the New Jersey shore. But these
have all a shrunken, dull, and if I may so call it, starved appearance, and are of
insignificant size. Such species may, and I doubt not do, exist at depths of
corresponding temperature, in the tropics, but they bear the same aflRnity to
those constituting the coral reefs, that our humble bracken does to the magnificent
and stately palm-tree-like Ferns of Polynesia.
in the Pacific, S^c. 75
Fahr. Throughout the coral archipelago to the eastward of
Tahiti, the surface temperature ranges from 78 to 81°. The
same may be said of that in the neighborhood of the detached
islets, between Tahiti and Samoa to the west. Throughout
this region, I observed all kinds of coral flourishing in perfec-
tion on the outer plateau of the reefs, at a depth of seven,
eight, and in some cases, as that just cited, twelve or thirteen
fathoms.
In our own hemisphere, in the vicinity of Eleuthera and
Abaco, and also of the Stirrup Keys on the N. E. edge of the
great Bahama Bank ; I have dredged up considerable masses
of Meandrina from a depth of sixteen fathoms, and in sailing
over Salt Key Bank, have seen them, on a calm day, in twenty
fathoms. This is probably attributable to the increased tem-
perature caused by the proximity of the Gulf Stream which
has here a heat of 85° Fahr. The most compact and vigor-
ous growth, may, I think, however, be considered as prevail-
ing, in general, at a depth of from three to eight fathoms.
To assume, therefore, that the lagoon islands are based upon
extinct submarine volcanoes, we must also suppose that these
all had their summits raised to nearly an uniform level, and
that, the one best adapted to the habits and development of
the coral animal, an arrangement scarcely within the bounds
of probability. It is difficult to believe that some two hun-
drea or more craters, if they ever existed in so narrow a space
as that occupied by some groups containing that number of
lagcon islands, nowhere presented more than one hundred or
one hundred and twenty feet difierence of level.
But granting that all these requisites for the establishment
of this theory existed ; it ofiers no explanation of the circum-
stance that some of the reefs have, as ascertained by sound-
ing, a thickness of several hundred feet, and of their fossil
representatives in the chalk and marine limestone being found
in sTata of still greater density. Neither does it in any way
account for the existence of extensive shore reefs like those of
Samoa, Hawaii and Tahiti ; or of encircling reefs with la-
goo IS between them and the shore, as at Vanikoro and several
of the New Hebrides and Friendly Islands ;^ or for the im-
76 Couthouy on Coral Formations
mense barrier reefs of New Caledonia and Australia, the latter
of which, at a distance of thirty or forty miles from the coast,
extends in an unbroken chain nearly one thousand miles from
north to south. It affords at best, but a very questionable
explanation, of a single variety of structure in these wonder-
ful edifices, than which nothing more forcibly illustrates the
immense results that may ensue from the operation of appa-
rently trifling causes, when continued unremittingly through-
out a long series of ages.
It is my belief that, to a certain extent, the corals are limited
in their range of growth by temperature rather than depth,
and that wherever this is not below 76^ Fahr. there,
ccBteris paribus, they will be found to flourish as in the
Polynesian seas ; accordingly we find that their principal for-
mations are placed within the tropics, and though I have no
means of ascertaining at this moment the fact, I apprehend
that in the Indian Ocean, as in the Pacific, the saxigenous
polypes will be found most abundant and at their greatest
depths, in a belt comprising about twenty degrees on each
side of the equator.
But even allowing that they invariably commenced their
structures at the extreme depth of twenty fathoms, it is obvi-
ous that no reef would attain a thickness of much more than
a hundred feet, before the labors of the polypes must cease
and themselves perish, in consequence of their exposure to the
sun's rays. The question then naturally arises, how are we
to account for the existence of coral banks, so greatly exceed-
ing this thickness as some are known to do ; if it is thus dis-
proved that their polypes build at corresponding depths?
Mr. Charles Darwin, who accompanied King and Fitzroy,
as Naturalist, in their late survey of the southern extremity of
our continent, was led by his examination of a lagoon island,
(the only one I believe on which he landed,) and a compari-
son of the observations of his predecessors on this subject, to
frame an hypothesis, which appears to offer us a solution of
this problem, at once satisfactory, simple and rational.
According to the statements lately given by Prof. Lyell, in
his lectures before the Lowell Institute, Mr. D supposes the
in the Pacific, ^c. 77
great thickness of the reefs, to have been formed by a gradual
and long continued subsidence of the original shelf of coral,
while the surface was maintained at the same level as at first,
by the unceasing additions made by the polypes. Carrying
out this principle, he attributes the peculiar conformation of
lagoon islands to the operation of similar causes. That is to
say, he considers that the site of those islands of such a char-
acter, now sprinkled over the whole vast coralliferous belt of
ocean, was once occupied by islands of various elevation, sur-
rounded as many of the same class now are, by a fringing or
shore reef ; that as these have slowly sunk, the reef has grad-
ually receded from the shore, and on their total disappearance
left the lagoon only to mark the place of their existence.
Thus the coral islands instead of being looked upon as the
germs of a new continent, should be contemplated as the
wrecks, or rather as beacons, pointing out where lie the wrecks
of one, long since
"In the deep bosom of the ocean buried.''
Having personally examined a large number of these
islands, and also resided eight months among the volcanic
class having shore and partially encircling reefs, I may be per-
mitted to state that my own observations have impressed a
conviction of the correctness of the theory here advanced by
Mr. Darwin. Indeed without being aware at the time that
such views were entertained by any one else, but failing
to discover in any author a satisfactory elucidation of the
apparent anomalies they exhibited, I was led, more than two
years ago, by a comparison of the features presented by the
reefs of Tahiti with those of the Dangerous Archipelago and
Paumotu Group, (of which I had just enjoyed an opportunity
of examining a very considerable number,) to similar conclu-
sions as to their origin, with those recently published by that
gentleman ; though not to entertain his opinions respecting
limited and definite areas of subsidence and elevation.
My observations in MS. on this subject are now in the pos-
session of the Navy Department at Washington ; but not
being permitted to have access to them, I am compelled, in
78 Couthouy on Coral Formations
all the statements made in this communication, to rely upon
memory alone. I shall in another place, briefly give my rea-
sons for believing that the whole of Polynesia is at present
slowly rising, and proceed, here, with a few remarks suggest-
ing themselves at the moment, relative to its former subsi-
dence.
It is not denied that some portions of this region may ex-
hibit certain peculiarities of structure, which, in the present
state of our information we may find some difficulty in recon-
ciling with this theory.
But I feel persuaded, that as this is enlarged, as a greater
number of facts bearing on the question are brought together,
and we are enabled to fix with more certainty than can now
be done, the causes of such variations from a general charac-
ter, these will nearly if not quite all be found consistent with
the admission of a principle, which holds out a rational ex-
planation of phenomena, inexplicable upon any previous hy-
pothesis.
The immensity of the tract, throughout which it is assumed
this subsidence or submergence of land has prevailed, will
appear less astonishing, when we reflect that nearly the whole
of that now elevated above the level of the ocean bears upon
its surface incontestable evidence of having been slowly up-
lifted from its depths, and that in some regions, as on the
Baltic coast, the process is still going on under our own obser-
vation. On the loftiest heights to which man has ascended,
as in the lowest vallies, the presence of beds of marine shells
and other fossils, attest that there once were the " foundations
of the great deep." Even in New Holland, whose animal and
vegetable productions difler so singularly from those of all the
world beside, as to leave conjecture itself at fault, in attempt-
ing to account for the fact ; and which a learned German
author, once gravely endeavored to show was the nucleus of
some comet that had come in collision with our planet — even
there, beds of marine limestone, and marine fossils of the
same genera, and evidently belonging to the same era as those
found in some of the Silurian rocks of Great Britain, have
lately been found in large numbers far inland and on the
in the Pacific, 6^c. 79
highest mountains. On the lower grounds of the coast, in the
vicinity of Newcastle, New South Wales, there are strata of
clay from sixty to one hundred feet thick, abounding in ma-
rine shells, many of them analogous to, and some of them
identical with, species at this moment living in the adjacent
seas.
It is not unreasonable to conjecture, that when the existing
lands constituted the bed of an ocean, teeming, as evinced by
their fossil remains, even in regions now condemned to the
regions of perpetual winter, with forms of animal life peculiar
to our tropical seas ; then the balance of land and water was
preserved by the existence of a broad equatorial continent, or
it may have been a number of large islands, whose structure
was chiefly, if not entirely volcanic. We can then conceive,
how by one of those stupendous oscillations, which an exam-
ination of its various strata, shows the earth's crust to have
experienced at different epochs ; as the Alps, the Andes, and
the Himalayas uprose from the abyss, and age after age con-
tinued to raise their aspiring summits to the skies ; the pre-
existing lands gradually sank and finally disappeared ; even
the elder mountain ranges, hiding " their diminished heads"
beneath the waters ; a few only of the loftiest remaining, like
scattered monuments, in those ancient
" Titan peaks that overtop the wave's,
Beaconing a sunken world." *
• It is a curious coincidence, if nothing more, and even to those who are not
in the habit of attaching much importance to the signification of names, may
seem worthy of this passing notice, that the appellation of " Paumotu," bestow-
ed by the natives upon the extensive group of lagoon islands to the eastward of
Tahiti, is compounded of " Fan,' lost or passed away, and " Motu," an island.
They have also an ancient tradition that all this region was once high land ;
but the gods being angered by the inhabitants, caused the sea to rise up and
overflow it, when all perished but one chief and iiis family, who were saved by
escaping to the top of Raiatea, an island a few leagues to the northwest of Ta-
hiti. From these, when the waters partially subsided, the i.«ilands were re-
peopled. Similar traditions are extant in Samoa and Hawaii. In one of these
the story is precisely that of Deucalion and Pyrrha, excepting that the rescued
pair raised up a new race by scattering cocoa-nuts instead of stones behind them.
I mention this only as one more instance, in addition to those already well
known, of the widely spread if not universal belief, in the occurrence of a del-
uge by which nearly the whole of inankind were once destroyed.
80 Couthouy on Coral Formations
Such we may consider the Tahiiian, Samoan and other
groups of elevated volcanic islands in Southern Polynesia, in-
terspersed among which are occasionally found lagoon islands
also. The rocks of the former class, from New Zealand to
Tahiti, (and I might include most of the Hawaiian islands,
two thousand four hundred miles farther north,) are so near-
ly alike in all respects, that on seeing a series of specimens
from each group placed together, any mineralogist ignorant
of the fact would in all probability decide that the whole
were collected within a short distance of each other. Indeed,
it was necessary in packing specimens collected by myself of
the deeper seated rocks of South New Zealand, Tahiti and
Kauai, for me to use great precaution in keeping them sepa-
rate : as if once mingled it would have been impossible from
any difference of character to identify their several localities
again.* May we not be justified then, in assuming this com-
mon character to be some proof of a common age as well as
origin for those islands, and an indication at least, that though
now so widely separated, there was a period when they were
connected together in a grand whole ?
It may perhaps be asked, if this theory of subsidence be
well founded ; why is it that the original shore reef does not,
instead of forming a lagoon, present aflat surface, on the total
submergence of the land, extending over the whole area once
occupied by this latter ? But this could not possibly occur
unless the submerged island had been of very small extent,
and rose almost perpendicularly from the sea. In all the
shore reefs that I have seen, there is a narrow interval of
shallow water between them and the shore, which the wash
of the beach renders too impure and turbid for the growth of
the coral in any quantity. This space would be continually
widening during the subsidence, (even were the lateral in-
crease of the coral equal to that upwards, which is doubtful,)
by reason of the recession of the mountain side from the reef
being greater than its perpendicular descent. Thus if we
* These specimens are now deposited in the new Patent Office at Washington,
and, as I learn, are open to public inspection ; so that any one maj there easily
convince himself of the truth of these remarks.
in the Pacific, ^c. 81
suppose the face of the mountain to have presented an angle
with the horizon of say SO*^, it is evident that for every
foot of subsidence there would have happened three feet
of recession from the reef's original Hmit. By the time
it had sunk two thousand feet, allowing as above, the lateral
and upward growth of the reef to be equal in rate, and that
rate sufficient to maintain it at its primary level, a channel
would thus be formed four thousand feet in width, between
reef and shore. The steeper the mountain, the narrower
would be the lagoon formed by the same amount of subsi-
dence ; and the reverse.
Now this difference is precisely that which is really exhib-
ited by the encircling and barrier reefs, according to the na-
ture of their coasts. In the abrupt and lofty volcanic islands
of Polynesia, the lagoons seldom exceed three fourths of a
mile or a mile in breadth, while on the gently ascending
coast of New Holland, the reef is in some places fifty miles
from shore.
I shall notice at present but one more feature in these
lagoons, which is their small depth, in comparison with what
the assumed subsidence would at the first glance lead us to
expect. But the wash from the beach, which in every in-
stance under my observation, spite of the protection aiforded
by an outlying reef, was very considerable ; and the detritrus
of the reef itself, together with the alluvium deposited by
streams, would be sufficient to raise the bed of the lagoon
very materially. If in addition to this we suppose, what may
well have been the case, that there were intervals of time
during which the land was stationary, while these causes con-
tinued in full operation, or that any considerable time has
elapsed since a cessation of the subsidence, there is no longer
any difficulty in accounting for this comparative shallowness
of the lagoons.
As the general character and aspect of the low coral islands
is not very clearly understood by some of our number, I
may be pardoned for venturing to occupy a few moments in a
hasty sketch of their structure. This seems the more called
for, because in the recent course of Lectures delivered for the
11
82 Couthouy on Coral Formations.
Lowell Institute, in this city, by that eminent Geologist, Prof.
Charles Lyell, a part of his language, while describing these
Paiimotus or Attols, was calculated to mislead many of his au-
dience as to their general configuration. He invariably spoke
of them as ''circular," "annular," or ''ring-shaped," and they
were so represented in the drawings illustrative of his re-
marks. Indeed, the question has since been more than once
put to me, how was this uniformity of outline to be accounted
for, unless the reefs really were based on submarine craters ?
But so far from this particular shape being the constant or
even most frequent one, it is of comparatively rare occurrence,
at least in the Polynesian seas. The most ordinary form is
that of a short bow, crescent, or horseshoe ; the convex side
facing different points of the compass in different islands. In
those of the Dangerous Archipelago, a very common figure is
a long, narrow, sinuous ellipsis. This, indeed, is the config-
uration one might expect a group of these Paumotus to
assume, following that of the pre-exi stent ridges whose site
they occupy.
Unassisted by plans or sections, it is not easy for the mind
to follow out the appearances that would be presented by a
mountainous tract surrounded by a shore reef, during its
transition to the lagoon formation. Nevertheless some notion
of this may be formed, if we imagine to ourselves an island
like Tahiti or Eimeo, or some of those in Samoa, consisting
of a number of central conical peaks, (some of them crater-
iferous,) from which diverge in all directions, sharp ridges
having upon them, here and there, hills sometimes several
hundred feet high — these ridges intersected by profound
ravines, whose walls frequently present a precipice of fifteen
hundred or two thousand feet elevation — and the ravines
sometimes barred by a transverse ridge, perhaps a portion
of the mountain, which has fallen down, so as to give the
space between the barrier and the head of the chasm the ap-
pearance of a long, narrow, and deep pit or trench.
The stupendous ravines which separate the lateral ridges of
the central chains, form such a remarkable feature in all the
volcanic islands of Polynesia, that they seem to me entitled
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84 Couthouy on Coral Formations
to something more than a mere passing notice of their exist-
ence. They may be divided into three classes. The most
common and extensive is that descending from the base of
the central ridge, where it is often so narrow that a person
may spring across with ease, to the sea shore, where it gradu-
ally widens into a plain of a mile or more in breadth, and
constitutes the most fertile and valuable portion of the soil.
The ravines of this character are in general the bed of
streams, fed by mountain torrents and cascades, of which I
have counted eleven from one point of view, having a fall of
from two hundred to twelve hundred feet, and glittering like
so many veins of burnished silver, on the black face of the
volcanic rock. They are bounded on each side by steep and
frequently inaccessible walls, every crevice and ledge of
which is clothed with the most luxuriant vegetation, and are
generally terminated at their upper extremity by the central
mountain, which rises in a perpendicular barrier of occasion-
ally two thousand feet elevation. The only way in which
these central peaks can be reached, is by following up the
securiform lateral ridges, and even this method is not always
practicable, on account of the steep and lofty cliffs that rise
from their summits, and frown a stern denial to all further
progress.
It is on the plains at the termination of these ravines, that
tlie villages of the natives are usually situated, and the
voyager Avho has coasted the shores of Tahiti, can never for-
get the Eden beauty of some of these spots. The groves of
orange, whose golden fruitage and snowy blossoms gleam
star-like from a mass of dark verdure ; the intermingling of
the tall cocoa's graceful, plumelike crest of drooping foliage ;
the lofty and wide spreading Yi, [Spondias dulcis,) and Bar-
ringtonia, {B. speciosa,) the rich hues of the bread fruit tree ;
the deep shining green of the broad, bannery leaves of the
plantain ; the Hibiscus, with its large, gay blossoms of orange
and crimson; the coral tree, [Erythrina corallode7idro7i,) one
dazzling mass of scarlet flowers ; with a little wilderness of
limes, guavas, and other trees peculiar to these climes — the
picturesque cabins, peering out here and there from the dense
in the Pacific, 6fc. 85
vegetation — the wild and gloomy ravines in the rear, lighted
up in spots by sparkUng waterfalls ; and in the remote back-
ground, the fantastic pinnacles of the grandly broken moun-
tains, towering up in clear relief against the soft blue tropical
sky — all these combine to form a picture of such transcendant
loveliness as can be scarcely equalled in any other part of the
world.
The second class of ravines is often not to be distinguished
from the first, where it opens on the coast, but at some dis-
tance inland it contracts to a very narrow gorge, of varying
extent, which again opens suddenly into a sort of circus, oc-
casionally eight or ten miles in compass, but usually from an
eighth to three-fourths of a mile in diameter, surrounded,
except at the outlet, by a lofty and precipitous escarpment, so
as to present exactly the aspect of a crater whose walls have
been riven asunder by some violent convulsion. This structure
of the ravines is of more common occurrence in the Samoan
and Hawaiian Islands, than at Tahiti. They are sometimes
dry at bottom, but more frequently form the basins of streams,
which, flowing through a tract of table land above, throw
themselves over a precipice of from one to five hundred feet
in height, and pass out through the narrow gorge to the sea.
At Upolu there is a fine instance of this, in the cataract of
Yainafa, or '• the broken water." The river, about seventy
feet wide, and four deep just above the pitch, falls in three
sheets about two hundred feet, into an oval basin, about three-
fourths of a mile in circuit, from which it escapes between
two high cliffs, not above twenty yards asunder.
In the following cut it is attempted by different lines, to
exh.bit at one view four distinct sections of this class of
ravine, to show the character of its terminating circus.
a. Natural section presented at tlie falls.
h. h. Imaginary transverse section at forty yards below them. The dotted
curvo line crossing h near the bottom, represents a large excavation, worn by
the s jray at the foot of the falls.
c. r. Similar section at widest part of circus, about one hundred and fifty
yard.' below the falls.
d. d. d. d. Do. at the gorge where the river enters it from the basin.
86
Couthouy on Coral Formations
The gorge, which in this instance may possibly have been formed by the
recession of the falls, extends almost three-fourlhs of a mile, and then gradu-
ally widens into a common valley, terminating seaward in a broad plain.
SECTIONS OF THE RAVINE AT THE FALL OF VAINAFA.
At Hilo, on the Island of Hawaii, there is a very beautiful
miniature ravine of this class, at the cascade of Waianuenue,
(" the water of the rainbow,") and there are grand examples
of it in the falls of Wailua and Hanapepe in the island of
Kauai, especially in the latter, which pitch down full five
hundred feet, into a circular basin about one thousand feet
round, hemmed in by walls of alternately columnar and strati-
fied lava, the only break in which is the narrow outlet for the
stream. If we imagine the rapids of Lake Erie to be a plain,
girt with lofty mountains, with the Niagara flowing through it,
and this latter narrowed below the falls to one-fourth its pres-
ent width, we shall have a very good idea of the ravine under
consideration. Of those similar in form, but having no stream
of water, there is a fine exemplification in the great amphi-
theatre at the head of the Nuuanu valley, in Oahu. They
are also to be seen in full perfection, on the north side of the
ridge of Konahuanui, between the Pali, or precipice of
Nuuanu, and Kualoa. There is one near Waiahole, described
by the late Meredith Gairdner, M. D. (in a " Sketch of Oahu,"
in the Pacific, $fc, 87
published in the Hawaiian Spectator,) as '' very remarkable
for its great depth and narrowness ; resembling exactly the
section of an immense chimney, rising from the heart of the
mountain : an effect which is heightened by the black color
of the rocks."
If we picture in our minds a ravine of this description,
having a barrier across the narrow gorge or outlet, we shall
then have an accurate conception of the structure of the third
class. Although this doubtless exists in the other islands, I
only met with it at Tahiti. There is one example of it in
the mountain lake of Waihiria, at the head of the Waihara
valley, North of Mairapehi. This lake is about fifteen hun-
dred feet above sea level, three-fourths of a mile in cirjait,
and ninety feet deep, bounded on all sides except the south-
ern b}?" a wall of rock from one thousand to fifteen hundred
feet high. To the South it is dammed up by a barrier of
inconsiderable height on the lake side, but on the other de-
scending several hundred feet to the valley, and apparently
formed by the crumbling down of a large body of rock from
the Western ridge. This is the same lake referred to by
Beechy, Tyerman and Bennet, and others, and prior to our
visit was believed by the natives to be unfathomable. There
is a similar pit, except that it has only a small stream at
the bottom, discharging itself by some crevice, between two
of the lateral ridges of Waritiva. With great difficulty and
some risk, I descended perhaps twelve hundred feet into this
ravine, near its commencement, thinking to find an easier
path to the shore ; but after scrambling and wading, for near-
ly a couple of miles, was to my vexation arrested by a naked
wall of lava, several hundred feet high, which nothing but a
bird or a lizard could scale. I was thus compelled to retrace
my steps, and toil up once more to the crest of the ridge. My
guide informed me that in the upper portion of the valley of
Atehuru, leading from Matavai to the foot of Orohena, there
were several of these barred ravines of less extent.
88
Couthouy on Coral Formations
SECTION OF A RAVINE CLOSED AT BOTH EXTREMITIES, IN ONE OF THE
VALLIES RUNNING FROM THE COAST TO THE BASE OF WARITIVA, IN
TAHITI.
Co
a. a. a. Lonejitudinal section of the ravine.
b. b. Steep lateral ridge, rising to a height of two thousand feet.
The mountains in outline, are from five lo eight thousand feet high.
It is difficult, satisfactorily, to account for these singular
chasms. That at Waihiria may indeed have been produced
by a landslip blocking up the valley, but the one last men-
tioned would rather appear, were it not for the perpendicular-
ity of its terminal walls, to have arisen from a confluence of
the two great lava streams forming the lateral ridges, as the
rocks are on all sides in a normal position and of uniform
structure. Or they may be owing to a sudden sinking in of
the crust at the time when the subterranean fires were in ac-
tivity. Pits, very similar to them, but of less extent, are of
quite frequent occurrence on the black ledge of lava surround-
ing the crater of Kilauea. The second class of ravines may,
I think, generally be referred to ancient craters, one side of
which has been rent apart by earthquakes. In their situa-
tions and outline, in the uniform perpendicularity of their
parietesj and the sub-columnar structure of the lava compo-
sing them, they correspond exactly to the craters of the table
land of Mauna Loa. In fact, not many years ago, during a
sharp earthquake, a similar outlet, since fiUtjd up near its com-
mencement by subsequent overflowings of the lava, was
produced on the S. W. side of the great crater of Kilauea or
in the Pacific^ 6fc. 89
Ka lua Pele, and extended if I remember aright, some seven
or eight leagues to the coast.
But to return from this long digression, to the subject more
immediately under consideration.
It is obvious that as the land sinks, and the water reaches
the base of any ridge, barrier, or mount, a shore reef may be
formed upon or around it, which, if the subsidence continues,
will, from the operation of causes already explained, be
gradually converted into an encircling or outlying one. There
will naturally be intervening channels, in place of some of
the ravines, while on those of a trench-like character and upon
the ruins of ancient craters, will form lagoon reefs, and on the
whole being overflown, there will thus be formed a group of
lagoons varying in size and configuration, according as they
rest upon a sunken crater, a ridge, or one of the trench-like
ravines, and surrounded by a common reef, which is traversed
at intervals, as in its primary state, by passages of various
breadth and depth. And such, on a large scale, as I have be-
fore observed, is the appearance presented by the Paumotu
groups and dangerous archipelagos of Polynesia.
Although the seaward side of the reefs encircling these,
has been described as rising in a perpendicular wall, yet it
must not be understood, that by this it is meant, that we lit-
erally step from an unfathomable ocean, upon the upper sur-
face of a reef. They present a succession of terraces or
plateaus, the outer having sometimes twelve or fifteen
fathoms ; and in one instance, that of Bellinghausen's Island,
twentyeight fathoms of water was found upon it. This low-
est plateau is of variable breadth, but I think seldom exceeds
one hundred and fifty feet ; declines somewhat rapidly sea-
ward, and apparently projects beyond the wall like a shelf, as
I have known the lead to fall from twelve fathoms on it, to
two hundred and no bottom, within a distance of about ten
yards.
These terraces become, as they recede from the sea, nar-
rower and shoaler, presenting a like declination with the low-
est, and having at their extremity an abrupt descent of several
feet. The highest, or last formed, differs in its margin forming
12
90 Couthouy on Coral Formations
a sort of steep talus extending to the next below it ; and al-
lowing for inequalities in the growth of the corals, offers a
dead level of from twenty to one hundred and fifty yards
broad, terminating for the most part at the fragmentary beach,
and often having less than a foot of water upon it at low tide,
except in the numerous hollows and gullies.
It has been suggested that this succession of terraces was
owing to the action of the surf, which breaks heaviest, and of
course tears off the largest masses, upon the extreme edge of
the plateau ; that when this has proceeded so far as to weaken
in a measure the force of the rollers, a less powerful surf
breaking against the inner wall thus formed, will in time
form a second terrace, and then a third, or even a fourth,
though this is perhaps rare, before it spreads harmlessly over
the broad upper shelf. Yet although the sea acts with great
force in abrading the reef, I doubt much whether it can have
produced such results as these. It would be more likely to
cause a long uniform slope, from the farthest limit of the
breakers, to their origin at the margin of the reef.
It is more in accordance with appearances to suppose that
such a slope once really existed, and that the reef subsequent-
ly sunk so low as to prevent the growth of the coral on this
inclined plane beyond a certain line. There may then have
ensued an interval during which the reef was stationary,
when the polypes would naturally build upwards from the
depth suited to their habits, and in time raise it to its former
level, thus forming the lowest wall, while the dead reef be-
yond constituted the lowest terrace. A second inclined plane
would be produced by the abrasive action of the surf, and a
second or third period of sinking, followed by one of rest and
re-elevation, would give the outer portion of the reefs that
peculiar conformation which they at present exhibit.
It is upon the lower terraces and margin of the upper one,
that the corals are found in their greatest variety, and exhibit
the richest hues. Clusters of orange, v?^let, crimson, green
of every shade, purple, blue and yellow, -are intermingled in
gay confusion, and with a brilliance yet softness of coloratian
of which pen or pencil can give but a faint idea. When first
in the Pacific, <^c. 91
passing over them, I could compare their appearance to noth-
ing but a pavement thickly strewn with bouquets of beautiful
flowers.
At a depth of three or four fathoms, the forms were as man-
ifold as their coloration, some branching like beautiful shrub-
bery, others spreading out like the most delicate mosses, and
others again resembling beds of saffron, or daisies and ama-
ranths, while in and out of, above and between the thickets
of these Neptunian gardens, sported thousands of splendidly
colored fishes, from not more than an inch to two or three
feet in length. A large bright scarlet Diacope (D. Tiea, Les-
son) a Julis about a foot long, of a rich bluish green, marked
with blood red bands crossing the back to the lateral line, and
intersected by others extending from the opercles to the tail,
(/. quadricolor, Less.) Serrani, Scari, Glyphisodons, Chasto-
dons, Balistes and Holocentri, all richly adorned, were some
of the most conspicuous in the bright array. The water was
so transparent that the smallest object on the bottom could be
seen as distinctly as if it were not throe feet from the surface ;
and gazing down upon the beautiful creatures that tenanted
these coral groves, like Coleridge's "Ancient Marinere," '-'I
blessed them unawares" — althou2:h the next moment I could
not avoid wishing to coax them into my net. As a drawback
however, upon all this beauty, silently but swiftly, near the
surface, glided in shoals, the spectral and malignant, -'raven-
ing salt sea shark," reminding one of satan's intrusion of his
hiteful presence amid the bowers of Paradise. So fierce were
these tigers of the deep, that they repeatedly seized hold of
the oars as we pulled toward the reef ; rendering the attempt
to reach by swimming (often the only chance) a coast thus
sentinelled, rather a hazardous afiair.
The solid, massive and encrusting genera of corals which
enter most largely into the composition of the reefs, appear to
flourish best in exposed situations and violently agitated wa-
ters. On the upper plateau the coral has generally a stunted,
dwarfish appearance, and the branching genera predominate
over the more showy Astraeas. Near its edge, and lining the
crevices, certain Goniopores, Porites and Pavonias, spread
92 Couthouy on Coral Formations
themselves in thin lamellse ; but these gradually disappear as
we recede from the surf, and finally abandon the field almost
entirely to the Madrepores. Ill calculated, however, by rea-
son of their fragility, to withstand the force of the breakers
that occasionally roll over the whole ledge, even these latter
are oaly found in small detached clusters, principally in the
little sandy pools and cavities which are scattered over the
surface, their greatest luxuriance being displayed in the clear,
tranquil waters of the lagoon, where they form submarine
thickets of great beauty, many yards in extent.
The major portion of the plateau is encrusted by Niiliiporas
and a laminar deposition of carbonate of lime. In this are
imbedded multitudes of Tridacna3, the edges of whose man-
tles, as shown by the gaping of the shell, are so gorgeously
colored, that a correct representation of them would certainly
be thought exaggerated by one who had not seen the originals.
The varieties in this respect are very numerous, but the most
common are a deep vivid ultramarine blue or green, with dark
orange, purple or golden ocellations and wavy lines inter-
spersed. The marginal papillae are similarly ornamented.
The Tridacnas appear like the Pholades, Lithodomi, &c., to
secrete a peculiar acid, enabling them to perforate calcareous
rocks, since, differing altogether in this from the shells imbed-
ded in branching corals, the situation in which they were gen-
erally found, was not caused by the growth around them of
the polyparia, nor by the deposition of calcareous matter.
This was evident at once, from their being in some cases im-
bedded in small clusters or masses of coral, which were cut
through by them in such a maimer that the parietes of the
cavity exhibited sections of the polyparia, transverse, vertical
or oblique, just as the Tridacna chanced to have worn its hole.
I have seen the base of large Madrepores, cut in this way, at
the origin of the branches, so that the upper portion of a
branch was on one side of the shell and the lower on the
other. The cavity is usually worn quite smooth, and fits
closely to the shell, there being often but just space left at the
surface for the valves to open about half an inch. They bury
themselves, beaks downward, and the basal margins of the
in the Pacific, (S^c. 93
valves parallel with the surface — adhering very strongly by
a coarse corneo-fibrous prolongation of muscle. It differs
somewhat from the byssus, properly so called, of the Mytil-
acea, which is produced at pleasure by the animal, may be
torn away without injury to it, and terminates in a sort of
receptacle at the base of the foot. Here the fibres proceed
from a thick, conical, tendinous mass, and though I have rea-
son to believe the animal has the power of detaching itself,
yet when it was attempted to pull one away from the rock,
in almost every case, the whole muscle was torn from the
body, inflicting a fatal wound. I have often pulled them off
in this way and left them on the reef, to see if they would
re-produce the byssus, but always found them dead the next
day. It is a little singular that the Tridacna, when im-
moveably imbedded, should continue to moor by as strong a
cable, as when free upon the surface it is exposed to the rude
assaults of the breakers. The manner in which they become
thus buried, seemed to require a word of explanation, because
this condition has been considered a proof of the rapid in-
crease of the coral, which it was imagined had thus covered
the shell subsequent to its attainment of full size, yet during
the animal's life.
On all parts of the reef. Crustacea and Echinodermata are
met with in astonishing numbers and variety. The MoUusca
generally speaking, are less abundant as a whole. The pools
and gullies literally seem alive with beautifully painted fishes.
a bare enumeration of whose genera would almost fill a page.
Among these a large spotted Murasna was conspicuous for its
fierceness not less than size. It lurked under stones or in
crevices, and when molested, instead of retreating, darted
directly at the intruder, and unless promptly avoided, inflicted
a most formidable bite. It moved with exceeding rapidity,
sometimes scuttling over the coral, sometimes making a suc-
cession of horizontal leaps from the water, of a couple of yards'
length. I have seen, at the attack of one, a whole boat's
crew flying in terror, who would fearlessly chase the numer-
ous sharks infesting the edges of the reefs and lagoons, till up
to their breast in the water.
94 Couthouy on Coral Formations
Scattered along the plateau are fragments of greatly vary-
ing size, thrown up by the surf, some loose, and affording
shelter to a multitude of small fish, Crustacea, &c. ; others
forming tabular masses of such magnitude as to render it al-
most incredible that any wave could be sufficiently powerful
to tear them off and transport them to their present locality.
They constitute one of the most remarkable features of the
surface reef at several islands. I have seen it for miles lined
with these nuclei of future ridges, from a yard square, to thirty
or forty feet long by four or five broad, and averaging three
and a half in height. Their lower portion is worn by the
water so as to cause the smaller blocks to assume a variety of
fantastic shapes. By the percolation and infiltration of water
charged with carbonate of lime, these masses are in general
firmly cemented to the subjacent coral, and converted into a
very solid limestone, called by seamen, '' reef-rock," in which
the original cellular structure is sometimes almost obliterated.
This reef-rock appeared to be the basis of the elevated belt
between the lagoon and sea, in almost every Paumotu that I
examined. T shall refer to these erratic blocks again, under
the head of re-elevation.
It sometimes occurs that the plateau or surface reef, instead
of extending quite to the beach of coral sand, is separated
from it by a strip of smooth coralline limestone, apparently
formed by cementation of the finer detritus, dipping from 5°
to 7^ seaward, and from ten to fifty or sixty yards wide. A
peculiar character in these belts, is the fissures, which from
one-eighth to three-fourths of an inch wide, run nearly paral-
lel with the beach for one hundred rods together, and some-
times cross them at very large angles with it. There are
similar formations along the North coast of Tutuila, one of the
Samoan Group, and in its harbor, Pangopango. They also
occur, but of coarser texture, on the East coast of Kauai, near
Wailua, where they are from eight inches to two feet in
thickness, and are frequently quarried for building materials,
such as foundations, door-stones, &c.
To this limestone shelf, or the surface reef, as the case may
be, succeeds a naiTOw and rather steep coral sand beach, be-
in the Pacific, (^c. "95
yond which rises the fragmentary ridge, composed of large
blocks of reef-rock, having their interstices filled with a rub-
ble consisting of small fragments of coral, shells, and Echini,
cemented together so firmly as to require a smart hammer-
stroke for their separation. It has an elevation of from three
to ten feet, and varies in width, even on the same island, from
one hundred and twenty feet to one thousand yards. It is
highest on its seaward side, where it rises somev/hat abruptly,
but shelves very gradually towards the low, sandy shores of
the lagoon. There is rarely much vegetation till the summit
is crossed, but thence inland it frequently flourishes luxuri-
antly to the very brink of the water. This elevated tract
seldom if ever entirely surrounds the lagoon. I do not re-
member having seen a single Paumotu, which had not, on
one side, a considerable space of low, naked reef, or detached
masses of rock, over and between which, the sea at high
water broke into the lagoon. At Raraka, on the southern
side, to the westward of the passage between this and the
sea, where the upper plateau is rather narrower than common,
the ridge was of a character entirely diiferent from what
was observed at any other island, being mostly a heap of
loose rubble, eight or ten feet high, and perhaps a hundred
yards in breadth at the base, nearly as sleep on the inland as
on the seaward side, and destitute of any trace of vegetation.
Just inside of this ridge, were numerous shallow pools of salt
water, ebbing and flowing with the tide, and abounding in
Ophiuroe, Cidarites, Fistularias and Actinias. A large species
of Melampus was so plentiful among the fragments at the
base of the ridge, that it could be collected by handfuls. Be-
yond the pools was a plain of coral, which I estimated to be
a large mile across to the lagoon, but had no opportunity of
ascertaining it by actual measurement. It appeared to have a
very slight ascent from the sea, and was tolerably well cloth-
ed with trees and shrubs, though the species were few in
number. A few cocoa-trees only were seen, and those had,
as the inhabitants (about thirty Chain Islanders, engaged in
collecting pearl shells,) stated, been introduced recently by
themselves.
96 Couthouy on Coral Formations
Crossing the plain, which is overrun with a variety of bur-
rowing Crustacea, terrestrial Paguri, and on some islands a
species of Birgus, as often found on trees as among stones j
we emerge from a tangled thicket upon the light green waters
of the tranquil lagoon. This of course, varies greatly in
extent and depth, and not less in the character of its bed.
Some have the appearance of being very shallow throughout,
the water being, except where darkened by occasional gullies,
of an uniform pale, yet brilliant green hue. In others, there
are large strips and patches toward the centre, where it is
nearly as blue as the surrounding ocean. At Aitoho, one of
the Disappointment Islands, the whole central portion of the
lagoon is of this latter color, as if it were very deep, although
less in circuit than many others. From the beach of some, I
have waded out for a couple of hundred yards, with the Avater
deepening almost imperceptibly, over a bottom of fine sand,
with only a few scattered bunches of coral ; while in others,
their bed is very unequal, full of large and deep pits, and
traversed by gullies several fathoms deep and from ten to
three hundred yards wide, occasioned probably by like irreg-
ularities in the submerged land.
At Serle Island, and several other Paumotus, I observed at
a couple of miles or so from shore, several small islets and
clumps of rock, rising above the surface of the lagoon, nearly
as much as its bordering ridge, and apparently encircled by
water much deeper than the average.
It would have been exceedingly interesting, and was cer-
tainly of importance in arriving at a correct idea of the struc-
ture of these islands, to have ascertained the composition of
such islets ; but the circumstances in which I was placed,
entirely dependent on the pleasure of those in whose opinion
such objects were of merely secondary consequence, and by
whom my every movement was limited and controlled, ren-
dered it impossible for me to make an examination so desira-
ble. Should they hereafter be found to consist of volcanic
rock, they would establish beyond all question the theory of
subsidence first advanced by Mr. Darwin. Should they, on
the contrary, be as I suspect, of coralline formation, this would
in the Pacific^ ^c. 97
not by any means, as I conceive, disprove it, but rather afford
us the means of determining with some degree of exactitude
the amount of re-elevation that has taken place at such islands.
I was informed by Mr. Samuel Wilson, of Tahiti, who had
long resided among the Hervey Islands, that at Mangaia,
which is an ancient reef elevated nearly three hundred feet,
there are in the central hollow formerly the bed of the lagoon,
many scattered patches of coral rock, some of them raised to
a height of forty feet. At a certain stage of the elevatory
process, it is evident that these patches must have presented
an appearance very similar to the lagoon islets to which I have
referred.
So far from the beach as examined, the bottom in some
lagoons I have found to be a clean coral sand, composed of
a detritus of coral and shells, but in most instances this
was covered to the depth of a foot by an exceedingly fine
white sedimentary paste or ooze, which on desiccation had
every character of common chalk, except in being much
more friable. I think it is principally formed by the decom-
position of flexible corallines and alcyonia, and the softer
Echinodermata, such as Fistularia and its congeners, all of
which abound in the lagoons, rather than from that of corals
proper. It may also partly arise from the excretions of certain
fishes, which feed occasionally on the tender extremities of
Madrepores, as readily as on Crustacea, Echini, 6oc. I once
collected a quantity of these corallines and kept them in a
jar of water till the muscular and fibrous portions were entire-
ly decomposed, when an impalpable sediment was deposited,
in all particulai's answering to that obtained from the lagoons.
Not le£LSt among the phenomena attracting our attention in
these Paumotus, are the channels which in the majority of
them afford a passage from the sea into the lagoon. There is
usually but one of any consequence at each island, though
there are rare instances of the occurrence of three or even
four at different points of the reef. They are almost invaria-
bly situated in the leeward reef, but there are occasional ex-
ceptions and deviations from this general rule, some of which
will be specified presently.
13
98 Couthouy on Coral Formations
These outlets are by some persons supposed to designate
fissures in the walls of submerged craters, represented by the
lagoons. If we admit, however, that these islands have been
formed by the process which it has been attempted to describe
in this communication, such an explanation is rather unsatis-
factory, since if the coral began to grow in the fissure imme-
diately upon the water covering it, there is no reason why
the reef should not reach the surface there, as early as at any
other point, and the rent thus be filled up.
In his lectures for the Lowell Institute, Prof. Lyell expres-
sed an opinion, that these channels were formed at a period
when the encircling reef was nearly on a level with the sur-
face of the ocean, by the rapid rush of the ebb over the lee-
ward side of the lagoon, whose waters at high tide were
raised considerably above sea level by the breakers bursting
into it from the windward quarter. The passage, he argu-
ed, once thus opened by the water forcing its way out, would
ever after be maintained by the same power.
Now this might possibly have occurred, provided the rush
of waters had ever been directed for a length of time to one
particular point. But if the surface of the reef was in times
past, as it now is, nearly of one level throughout, which there
seems no reason for doubting, it is evident that the ebb would,
at the period alluded to by Prof. Lyell, set equally over the
whole leeward portion, till uniformity of level between the
lagoon and sea, was restored at low tide. As he had no refer-
ence either in his descriptions or diagrams, to the plateau
which I have described as extending from the beach to some
distance seaward ; but rather spoke as though he supposed the
whole space between the lagoon and surf to be a fragmentary
ridge ; I have sometimes thought that when he spoke of the
reef, as nearly on a level with the surface of the ocean at the
period when the passages were formed, he meant that this
ridge was much lower then than at present, yet sufficiently
high to oppose a considerable obstacle to the efflux of the
surplus waters of the lagoon ; or in other words, that the dif-
ference of level between the sea and reef, consisted in the
latter being a little the higher, instead of as it really is, the
lower of the two. If it was in fact his idea, that the lagoon
in the Pacific, ^c. 99
had once been girt by such a wall, the conclusion was not
unreasonable that the constant pressure of the water, poured
over from the windward side of the reef, would eventually
form a breach in the weakest portion of its leeward side. But
in truth such a condition of things never existed, there being
in most Paumotus to the present day, on one side or other, a
considerable portion of the reef where there is no ridge to bar
the escape of the water from the lagoon, and yet a passage is
found. Nor, as I have said, is this always on the leeward
side. At Raraka, which is situated in the full strength of
the south-east trades, it is on the southern, or windward side.
At Clermont Tonnerre, and Tooa, the westernmost of the
Disappointment Islands, the entrance, if any exists, must be
to windward, as the coast in that direction is very low and
broken, and none was discovered in running down the lee
shore. At Waterland Island the opening is in the eastern or
weather reef.
Moreover, there are reefs, like that of Ocean Island, as yet
wholly submerged, save in two or three small spots, which
are intersected by no less than four canals. At this island,
there is one entrance on the south-east side, and three about
half a mile apart in the south-west portion of the reef. In
these last, it is worthy of notice that the depth is eight or ten
feet greater than that of the lagoon, and therefore could not
have been excavated by the outward rush of its waters, as
this at most could have worn a passage in the reef to the level
of their bed.
On the other hand, at Aitoho, the eastern Disappointment
Island, no passage was met with, in pulling all round the isl-
and, although portions of it are so low, that the surf at high
water must break heavily into the lagoon.*
At Rose Island, where, judging from the drift line on the
beach, there is a rise and fall of about five feet, the entrance
is to leeward, and the same at Christmas Island. Through
all these channels, the ebb pours out with great velocity,
• This peculiarity, with the apparent great depth of its waters, and its circular
outline, render it possible that this lagoon is one of those occupying the site of
a submerged crater.
100 Couthouy on Coral Formations
whether they are on the windward or leeward side, the water
falhng into them from the lagoon and fringing plateau, so as
to resemble a mill race.* At Raraka, six stout oarsmen, in a
swift whale-boat, were a full quarter of an hour, vainly at-
tempting to enter the lagoon, though the passage was not
above seventy or eighty yards in length ; and finally succeed-
ed only by taking an eddy pointed out by the natives. The
velocity of the current here could not have been less than six
or seven miles an hour, and it was not greater at Rose Island,
where the entrance is on the opposite side. The lagoon of
this latter is however of comparatively small extent.
But rapid as it is, this current alone does not account for
the existence of such channels. It is difficult to believe that
the attrition of the passing water would suffice to prevent
their being closed or filled up by the labors of the polypes,
when we see these flourishing in the greatest perfection on
the margin of the reef, exposed to the unceasing and far more
violent action of the surf, which is continually tearing off
large masses of rock, and driving them toward the beach.
And were we at first sight disposed to consider their formation
the result of the powerful tides, a closer examination would
convince us of error, by showing that in no portion of the
reef is the growth of the encrusting and lamellar corals more
profuse than upon the sides (and in some instances the bot-
tom also,) of these very channels. Even the more fragile
Madrepores are to be seen there, though less in size and num-
ber than inside.
The tides on the weather side of Christmas Island, whirl
round it with frightful rapidity, so that it is highly dangerous
to venture into them with a boat. The surf also, on this
side, runs to an amazing height, especially during the spring
tides, rising sometimes, like that of Guam, to the altitude of
twenty feet, before it bursts upon the reef Yet though the
extreme edge of the plateau has been greatly shattered by
these tremendous rollers, the polypes are no where more in-
dustrious or numerous than just inside the breakers.
* Christmas Island is an exception to this rule, the ebb current setting out
moderately, owing probably to the shallowness of the lagoon, and unusual width
of the passages.
in the Pacific, ^c.
101
It is another argument against the probabiUty of the reef
passages being produced by the tides, that they are generally
deepest toward the outer margin of the reef, where the cur-
rent is weakest, and shoal gradually as we approach the
lagoon, near whose entrance it is most rapid. Moreover, no
accumulation of water would be likely to force a passage
either into or from the lagoon, through the reef, against wind
and sea, or even aided by them, when it could without diffi-
culty flow over it on the leeward side, till the waters of the
lagoon were on a level with those of the ocean. Much less
should we expect it to scoop out several channels, and that
too on both sides of the reef, as we see them in some Paumo-
tus. At Ocean Island, whose lagoon of twenty four miles in
circuit, has no less than four entrances, situated as shown in
the accompanying sketch ; seven-eighths of the reef are, even
at low water, overflowed to the depth of two feet or more.
SKETCH OF OCEAN ISLAND AND REEF.*
..:^-
••*;*.s^..
"""%
"%.A^
i
•■a
i
t .' ,-1.
1 Ilih
ttiniiiuU.-iiV
The figures represent the depth of water in fathoms. The dotted lines inside
of the reef indicate coral patches nearly bare at low tide. The arrow denotes
a passage through the reef to the main island. The other figures explain them-
selves. The centre of the island is in 28" 22' N. lat., and 178^ 30' VV. long.
• The British whale ship Gledstanes, Capt. J. R. Brown, was wrecked on
the reef at midnight of July 9th, 1837. The cut here given is reduced from a
102 Couthouy on Coral Formations
The lagoon is everywhere full of sand-banks and patches
of coral, having only a few inches of water upon them, and
as will be seen by reference to the figures, is not so deep
by from ten to eighteen feet as the channels in the reef.
Whatever may be thought of the other passages, it is clear
that the one leading to the island is not owing to the action
of currents, as from its sheltered situation, and the shallowness
of the water between the beach and margin of the reef, they
are scarcely felt,
I cannot, therefore, in view of these facts, coincide with
those who entertain the opinion that the lagoon entrances
were primarily hollowed in the reef by the rush of surplus
waters from the enclosed basin, and have been kept open ever
since by the tides. If we adopt the- doctrine of a general
subsidence of the land, with its attached shore reef, during
which the latter has been maintained at its original level by
the polypes ; it appears to me that the facts admit of an ex-
planation more probable, though not covering perhaps every
difficulty.
I believe that these reef channels, in almost every instance,
originated during the primal condition of the islands, in the
influence of fresh water streams preventing the growth of the
coral where they emptied themselves. Instances of the same
thing now happening, are frequent in all the volcanic islands
of Polynesia. I observed especially at the Samoan and
Hawaiian islands, that there were openings in the shore reefs
opposite the mouths of streams, and sometimes very insignifi-
cant ones, which I am convinced were caused by the fresh
water acting detrimentally upon the polypes. While the
island remained above the sea, or rather while the stream
continued to flow, the same causes in which it originated
would keep the channel open. When the subsidence had
reached that point at which these causes ceased to operate,
chart engraved for the third number of the Hawaiian Spectator, by a native
scholar of the Mission Seminary at Lahainaluna, Maui, from surveys by Capt.
Brown, who remained upwards of five months on the island, with his crew.
" The only fresh water is what drains through the sand, after the heavy rains.''
—[Haw. Spec. July, 1838.]
in the Pacific y ^c. 103
provided the depth was not too great, the polypes would soon
by the dififusion of their gemmules, extend themselves over
this portion of the reef, the same as elsewhere. Assuming
the depth of the channel at that period to have been from
twenty to forty feet, and the upward increase of the coral
therein, to have been ever since equally rapid with that on
the reef, it is clear that the original difference of level, be-
tween this latter and the bed of the channel would remain
unchanged to this hour, were there no tide whatever setting
in or out. Even supposing that before the action of the fresh
water ceased, the subsidence had been so great that this dif-
ference of level amounted to between two and three hundred
feet, (though it is very doubtful whether such could ever
have been the case, since the amount of elevation from the
deposition of alluvial matter, would in all probability be suffi-
cient to counterbalance the depression by subsidence,) this
would not invalidate the explanation here suggested.
In all the Paumotus that I have seen, these channels are
very narrow, often but a few feet, and rarely exceeding forty
or fifty yards in width. Even in the semi-encircling reefs of
Tahiti, Samoa and Hawaii, they are seldom more than a few
rods across. Supposing then the bed of a channel to have
been at any period so far below the surface as to preclude the
formation of coral upon it ; still, in process of time, the lateral
increment would form a bridge across, at the depth best adapt-
ed to the requirements of the zoophytes. During the same
period its width would be considerably contracted at the sur-
face, and except in large openings, might be wholly closed up.
Instances of these bridsfed channels are numerous throughout
the coral islands of Polynesia. It frequently happens that
the approaching shelves have not yet come in contact, and a
crevice from only a few inches to a yard in breadth, is left.
On looking down this, the bottom and sides of the ancient
channel, are seen as distinctly through the transparent water,
as if within reach of the hand. Such crevices are unusually
frequent at Rose Island. An examination of these has led
me to conclude that the existing entrances into lagoons, are
attributable only to their original magnitude having been such
104 Couthouy on Coral Formations
as to prevent their being, as yet, obliterated as others have
been, by the extremely slow growth of the coral ; and that in
the lapse of fjiture ages, they too will disappear, when the
lagoons will gradually dry and be partially filled up with
detritus from the neighboring beaches. Possibly, the level
between the sea and the lagoon of Aitoho, to which I have
stated no entrance was seen, may be restored by the water
accumulated during fioodtide passing out by subterranean
canals, such as are described above.
It is not improbable that some channels were produced by
other causes than that here mentioned, such as originsd in-
equalities in the submerged land, or fissures made in the reef
by earthquakes, which we may presume to have been, at a
former period, as frequent in this region as they now are in
those where volcanic fires are still raging ; but I am convin-
ced that instances where a passage has been cut through a reef
by the action of tides are of exceeding rarity, if indeed they
occur at all. So long as it is the tendency of water to seek
an uniform level, I cannot conceive how that accumulated in
the lagoon during the flood tide, or from the rolling in of the
surf, should in flowing out over a reef covered even at low
water to a depth of from one foot to ten fathoms, excavate a
narrow canal, occasionally (as at Christmas and Ocean Islands,)
deeper than the lagoon itself.
It is my impression that Prof. Lyell described these chan-
nels as invariably situated on the leeward reef; yet suggested
no cause for their assumed absence on the windward side, ex-
cept the inference that as the water was forced into the lagoon
from that direction, it would naturally seek to escape in an
opposite one ; and at a late meeting of this Society it was
asked why, if his reasoning was not just, such should be the
case.
But they are, as I have endeavored to show, confined to no
particular portion of the reef, though they certainly do occur
most frequently to leeward. Nor will this, upon reflection,
appear so singular as it may at first be considered. Admitting
that there were originally as many in the weather as in the
leeward reef, by far the greater number would long since
in the Pacific, ^c. 105
have been filled up by fragments broken from the outer mar-
gin of the plateau sind carried landward by the surf, together
with the drift and wash from the beach of loose coral sand
and shingle. Others we may suppose have been obliterated
by the natural increase of the coral, till, from both causes,
only one remains here and there. Still there are sufficient to
show us that the formation of these channels cannot with
propriety be attributed to causes that would operate but in a
certain direction, such as we must regard the tide, which can
scarcely be supposed to seek an egress against the continual
rushing in of a powerful surf.
Much light would no doubt be cast upon this and many
other peculiarities in the coral formations we have been con-
sidering, by an examination and comparison of the phenomena
presented by those of the Antilles, the Caribbean Sea, Euid
along our southern coasts. In fact, I believe that without
such comparison, it is impossible for a person to arrive at a
full knowledge of the structure of these rocks. Those es-
pecially, bordering the South coasts of Cuba and Florida,
deserve particular attention, on account of the numerous ca-
nals intersecting the extensive reefs, the varied nature of their
lagoons, and the opposite character of their neighboring lands,
which, broken and mountainous in the one case, are in the
other low, sandy, and level. I trust that at some future peri-
od it will be in my power to examine these interesting forma-
tions, with more time and opportunity for their study at com-
mand, than were enjoyed in my brief and restricted visit to
those in the great coral region of the Pacific.
(To be coutinued.)
14
106 HalVs Remarks on Niagara Falls.
Art. X.— NIAGARA FALLS — THEIR PHYSICAL CHANGES,
AND THE GEOLOGY AND TOPOGRAPHY OF THE SUR-
ROUNDING COUNTRY. By James Hall, State Geologist of New
York ; Corresponding Member Bost« Soc. Nat Hist, &c.
The cataract of Niagara and the geology of the surround-
ing country, have been often described ; but believing that
there are many facts unnoticed, and others which have not
had due weight in these considerations, I shall venture a fur-
ther attempt at illustrating some important points regarding
this great finger post in the path of time. I am far from
asserting that the problem regarding the recession or the for-
mer condition of this great cascade is settled. So many dis-
turbing causes are constantly presenting themselves, that al-
though the great principles may be deemed established, yet it
is impossible to calculate accurately the effect of these minor
influences. Every fact recorded of the past, the present, or
the future condition of this cataract will aid in the calculation
of the final result, which, some thousands of years hence,
may be made with tolerable accuracy. In the mean time we
must content ourselves with observing these facts and laying
down land-marks for the guidance of those who may follow
us in the attempt to decide the effect of time upon these an-
cient rocks.
A striking feature in the Topography of western New York,
is the great difference of elevation between the Lakes Erie
and Ontario, when taken in connexion with the generally
level or but slightly uneven surface of the country, and where
there are no disturbances among the strata. The difference
of elevation between the other great lakes is comparatively
small, although Superior is situated in a disturbed geological
region. The elevation of Lake Erie is three hundred and
thirtyfour feet above Lake Ontario, and the greater part of the
difference is overcome by Niagara river in the space of one
mile at the rapids and falls.
The barrier at the outlet of Lake Erie is formed by a ter-
race of limestone which extends from the Hudson river, west-
f
5 Ij cike Ontario
\
>^^j^
agara
MP Fort Niagara
S'"Uaytas
Whirlpool
108 HalVs Remarks on Niagara Falls
ward far into Canada, forming for many miles the northern
boundary of the lake. The southern slope of this terrace or
platform of limestone passes off beneath the water, forming
the bed of the lake. This terrace terminates abruptly on the
north, within a short distance of the lake, and we descend
into a low, level country, underlaid by marles and shales of
the saliferous formation, which extend for a distance of fifteen
or eighteen miles. Beyond this, there is an almost impercep-
tible ascent for eight miles, when it suddenly plunges down
about 250 feet, over the outcropping edges of various strata,
which here terminate abruptly, to the low table land, border-
ing Lake Ontario. From the base of this esc£irpment, the
country slopes almost imperceptibly to the level of the lake,
seven miles distant, and one hundred and twenty feet lower.
A great portion of the country for twenty miles north of the
first terrace, or that borderina: Lake Erie, is so level that a
rise of the Niagara river for thirty feet, would inundate an
extent of thirty miles on both sides. After leaving the level
country, the ascent, as before stated, is very gradual to the
north ; but when we arrive at the edge of the great terrace of
Lewiston and Glueenston, the elevation is thirtyeight feet
above the level of Lake Erie. The general outline of this
part of the country will be seen in the section from Erie to
Ontario.
This great terrace or platform is known in New York as
the mountain ridge, and in Canada as Glueenston heights. It
extends to the westward of Niagara river, beyond the head of
Lake Ontario, and eastward beyond the Genesee river, where
it merges in the general level of the country ; partially from
the dip of the rocks in that direction, and partially from the
thinning of some of its members. The abrupt termination
of the various strata in the face of this cliff, prove conclusively
the extent of denuding action upon this portion of the coun-
try. The basin of Ontario, on the north of the terrace, has
evidently been excavated from the sedimentary strata, the
limit of denuding agency and that of the lake basin being
the line of this escarpment. The edge of this escarpment is
indented by numerous ravines or gorges, extending to a great-
and the Geology of the Surrounding Country. 109
er or less distance ; they usually present a broad opening to
the north, and terminate at a point within the first mile, and
generally within a shorter distance. The streams now flow-
ing in these ravines, evidently had little or nothing to do
with their excavation, as the space is partially filled with
drift, a deposit from another source. These indentations are
doubtless in part the effects of the great denuding agency
which produced the escarpment, by undermining and remov-
ing the different materials.
It has been supposed by some, and Dr. Daubeny has
adopted the opinion, that the terrace or escarpment at Lewis-
ton was produced by a fault ; either an uplifting of all the
strata on the south, or a downthrow of those on the north.
Not having Prof. Daubeny's paper before me, I cannot state
his arguments, but whatever they may be, they are certainly
unsupported by facts. The strata are all visible in either di-
rection, and there is no evidence of even the smallest disturb-
ance.
The strata, as they are exposed in the terrace of Lewiston
and Q^ueenston, and in the banks of the river on either side,
are exhibited in the section on the next page.
There is here not only no evidence of a fault causing the
difference in elevation, but direct proof to the contrary ; the
soft marl and shale, forming the base of the cliff in the river
banks, underlies the plateau from this place to Lake Ontario,
and is visible, almost continuously, for the whole distance.
On the other hand, there are the most unequivocal proofs of
denuding action, and that the whole basin of Ontario is due
to the excavating power. It will be seen that the character
of the strata is such as to offer great facilities for the operation
of such an agent, consisting of alternating hard and soft beds.
The action of water would undermine the harder, and leave
them to fall by their own weight, while the softer materials
were removed. The denudation of such extensive districts,
could only have taken place while the country was submer-
ged, and during the period of its elevation from beneath the
ocean. This principle has been recognized by Mr. Hayes, in
his description of the '' Geology and Topography of Western
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HalVs Remarks on Niagara Falls. Ill
New York,"* By adopting this mode of explanation, we are
enabled to account for the existence of this and similar terra-
ces, alo^g the lines of bearing of our extensive limestone
formations, as well as for the deep valleys of ancient origin.
The strata forming the escarpment at Lewiston, as seen in
the section, are those through which the chasm of the Niaga-
ra is excavated. The whole dip gradually to the south, and
all below No. 8, disappear below the level of the river before
reaching the falls, as may be seen by the dotted line bed which
represents the surface of the river below the falls. The strata
above this line are those excavated to form the channel of the
river. The limestone forming the summit of the terrace, and
at its margin not more than twenty feet thick, gradually in-
creases from the addition of higher layers, till at the falls it
has acquired a thickness of one hundred and twenty feet.
This limestone, about one mile south of the falls, disappears be-
neath the surface, and is succeeded by a soft marl of a bluish
or greenish grey color, with purple bands. This formation,
which is a continuation of the Onondaga saliferous group,
occupies all the level country from two miles south of the
falls, to Black Rock, a distance of eighteen miles by the
course of the river. This is succeeded by the water limestone
and Helderberg hmestone group. The saliferous formation,
occupying this great breadth of country, and forming an im-
portant item in any calculation regarding the recession of the
falls, has nevertheless always been overlooked by observers,
and its existence in that part of the country was never noticed
by any one, till the publication of the New York Geological
Reports, in 1838. Previously, all the distance between the
falls and Lake Erie was considered as underlaid by limestone ;
and the limestone of Black Rock, or the Helderberg group,
was placed immediately above the Niagara limestone, and
represented as resting upon it.
The Niagara river, in its escape from Lake Erie, has exca-
vated a passage through the Helderberg limestone, (No. 10,)
which forms the upper terrace before noticed, leaving a small
• Am. Journal of Science, Vol. XXXV. No I.
112 HalVs Remarks on Niagara Falls
island, known as Bird's Island, in the midst of the stream.
From Black Rock to within two miles of the great fall, the
channel is excavated in the rocks of the saliferous group, the
descent in this distance being only fifteen feet. About one
mile south of the fall, the Niagara limestone approaches the
surface, and forms the commencement of the rapids. The
current, for the first two miles after leaving the lake, is
very rapid ; after this distance, it flows on more gently, the
channel gradually widening as far as Grand Island, where if
is nearly two miles wide. It then divides, the greater quan-
tity of water running on the west side of this island. There
are several small, low islands in the river, above Grand Island,
but this is far larger than all of them. Below this island the
river expands to a width of two or three miles, and presents
all the appearance of a quiet lake with small, low islands.
Approaching the rapids, the river narrows, and the current
becomes more rapid, and for about one mile before reaching
the grand cascade, rushes on with inconceivable velocity,
over a declivity of fifty two feet, to the edge of the precipice,
where it is precipitated into a gulf one hundred and sixty feet
below.
The chasm through which the Niagara river flows, from
this point to its emergence into the low country at Lewiston,
is excavated in the rocks represented in the section, Nos. 7
and 8 only being visible at the falls, the others rising succes-
sively from beneath the water, owing to the declivity of the
bed of the river, and the ascent of the rocks to the northward.
The sides of this chasm present almost perpendicular walls,
with a talus at the bottom, formed by the falling of some of
the higher masses. The outlet of this chasm, where the
river emerges into the plain at Lewiston, is sc£U'cely wider
than elsewhere along its course. In some places the river
flows in a channel of less than two hundred yards across, and
again is expanded to twice that width. The breadth of the
chasm across the top, is nearly twice that of the channel or
stream at the bottom. The declivity of the bed of the river,
from the falls to Lewiston, is one hundred and four feet, or
nearly fifteen feet to the mile, which gives great velocity to the
and the Geology of the Surrounding Country. 113
stream. At one place, however, about a mile below the fall,
and where the channel is narrowest, the stream glides along
with comparative quiet, while below this, where the channel is
broader, it is thrown into great confusion. Again, below the
whirlpool the surface of the river is more smooth, and the
current more gentle, though the channel is narrower than
above. The cause of these appearances, which have seemed
inexplicable upon the common theory, and have been used as
arguments against the recession of the falls, is to be sought in
the geological structure of the place. It will be seen that
below the whirlpool there are no hard rocks in the bed of the
river, and consequently the channel is deeper than where such
rocks exist. At the whirlpool, and above that place, the hard
sandstone, No. 2, is at and near the level of the river, and
consequently the channel is not worn so deep. Again, after
this hard mass has dipped beneath the surface, the channel is
excavated in softer rocks ; hence the narrow channel and
smooth water a mile below the falls. Near the falls, the
higher beds of sandstone and the Protean limestone come to
the level of the river, and thus cause a wider, shallow channel,
and more tumultuous water. Such, simply, I conceive to be
the explanation of the variable width of the chasm, and the
greater or less violence of the water.
Upon the west bank of the river, at the whirlpool, there is
a depression, and a deflection in the course of the river to the
right, as will be seen by referring to the map. Standing
upon the east bank of the river, this depression has the ap-
pearance of having been worn by the eddying current of the
stream ; but on farther investigation it proves to be of differ-
ent origin. During a recent visit, in company with Mr. Lyell,
we examined this place, and found it to be an ancient gorge,
filled with drift, except a narrow ravine through which a
small stream flows into the river. This stream may be traced
in a north-west direction for two miles, where it comes to the
level of the surrounding country. In one or two places, near
the river, the bed of this stream has laid bare the rocks,
which proves that they are not excavated so deeply as the bed
of the Niagara. From the termination of this ravine, upon
15
114 HalVs R&tnarks on Niagara Falls
the table land, going in a north-west direction about one mile,
we commence descending through another deep gorge, which
terminates upon the plateau at the base of the escarpment, at
St. Davids. It will be perceived, by referring to the map, that
the course of the river before coming to the whirlpool, if con-
tinued in the same direction, would lead to St. Davids. From
this fact it has been inferred that there is a continuous ancient
ravine, filled with drift, from the whirlpool to this place.
This most remarkable fact has been cited as a strong objection
to the theory of recession by the action of the river upon its
own bed. Still, however, I hope to show that its existence
is equally an objection to the chasm having been produced by
the action of the sea.
If this ravine be continuous from the whirlpool to St. Da-
vids, and existed previous to the excavation of the Niagara
channel to Lewiston, it seems natural to suppose that it
would have taken that direction. If we suppose that the
undermining agency of the ocean, aided by the stream, exca-
vated the Niagara chasm, why would not the same agency
have cleared out this ancient ravine ? And if it be assumed
that the stream had commenced flowing by way of Lewiston,
then we require nothing more to account for the commence-
ment of the chasm. The assumption that the sea excavated
the present channel of Niagara, does not aid in the difficulty
of explaining why the ancient ravine of St. Davids was not
cleared out ; but on the other hand, the existence of that
ravine, filled with drift, is a strong argument that the Niagara
did excavate, of itself chiefly, its present channel. For had
the sea remained long enough after the filling of this ravine
with drift, to excavate that of Niagara, it would have removed
a portion at least of it, and have drained the water in that di-
rection. We can scarcely conceive it possible that this ravine
could have been filled with drift, by any means, while such a
stream as the present Niagara river was flowing through it,
and if it has, at any time, been a large water course, there
must have been a cessation of the stream diu'ing the time of
this filling up.
The most rational explanation, ard the one most consonant
and the Geology of the Surrounding Country. 115
with existing facts, appears to me to be, that the ravine of St.
Davids was excavated by the power of the waves, aided prob-
ably by\a stream, though it may have been a very insignificant
one. That this ravine was formed previously to the period of
the drift, and that during this time it became filled with the
transported materials to such an extent that the stream after-
wards was unable to excavate a channel through the mass.
Under these circumstances, the water would find an outlet at
the lowest point, into the basin of Ontario ; whether that
point were over a surface of rock or of drift, and after the
channel was once commenced, it would go on deepening, un-
less some violent change should alter the configuration of the
surface. Now there is no evidence of such a change in the
Niagara district, and it seems more rational to conclude that
the stream, which may have formerly found its way through
the ravine of St. Davids, after the filling up of that channel,
took the course by Lewiston, that being the lowest point at
which it could find a passage to the lower country on the
north. It may be necessary, perhaps, to suppose a depression
in this direction before the water would flow there ; and such
a depression may have existed from causes in operation previ-
ously, or there may have been an indentation in the edge of
the terrace at this place, like those farther east, near Lockport.
There appears, indeed, strong reason for supposing that there
was a depression in the surface at the place where the river
now flows, before the deep channel was excavated ; there is a
general depreswsion on either side, and a transverse section of
the river would present the appearance represented in the an-
nexed diagram.
The recent deposit, forming Goat Island, is upon a surface
lower than the top of the rapids, indicating removal of the
116 Hair 3 Remarks on Niagara Falls
surface rock to some extent, before the period of that form-
ation.
I will now proceed to consider, first the objections to the
theory that this ravine was produced by the combined action
of the stream and the waves of the sea ; and next the argu-
ments in favor of the hypothesis that the river has excavated
its own channel, or by far the greater portion of it.
Examples are not unfrequent where the closing up of an
outlet by drift, has caused the excavation of a new channel
through solid rock. Perhaps the best illustration of this fact
occurs in the passage of the Genesee river from the upper to
the lower valley, from Portage to Mount Morris. The river,
flowing from the south as far as Portage, is suddenly turned
around to the opposite direction, and then again turns to the
north, cutting its channel for about two miles through solid
rock, in some parts to the depth of three hundred and fifty
feet. At the end of this chasm it emerges into a more an-
cient valley, and at a point which would communicate with
the river at Portage, before its deflection, by less than half the
distance which it has required in its present course to reach
this place. Now had this short space been occupied by a
bluff of rock, we should easily have found an explanation of
the reasons why the river did not pursue a direct course. But
what are the facts ? This shorter space, intervening between
the two portions of the channel, is occupied by a deep deposit
of drift, rising higher than the surface of the rocks where the
river has found its channel. In the process of examination
and excavation for the Genesee valley canal it has been found
that this drift is of great depth, extending even below the
level of the present bed of the river. The question presents
itself, why did not the stream remove the gravel and sand,
and make itself a channel in the shortest direction, instead of
going twice as far through rocky strata ? Or if we advance
the argument that this channel was excavated in part by the
aid of the sea, why did not this undermining agency affect
this deposit of sand and gravel ? The truth is incontroverti-
ble that many streams have excavated their channels to great
depths in rocky strata, long after the ocean left the surface.
and the Geology of the Surrounding Country. 117
Passing lower down on the Genesee river, there are other
places where the stream has left the old channel, now filled
with d/ift, and formed a new one, through rocky strata ; and
finally, at Mount Morris, it emerges into another ancient val-
ley from a narrow gorge bounded by mural escarpments. ^
would be absurd to assert, that broad valleys, with slopin£3
sides, filled, or partially filled with drift, are of the same age, or
due to the same agency, as the narrow, deep valleys or chasms
with clean, rocky embankments, and containing no other loose
materials than those arising from the adjacent rocks.
Similar examples may be found in the outlets of Seneca
and Cayuga Lakes, which flow into Lake Ontario. Now the
course of t?iese outlets is not in a direct line north to the
lake, but from Seneca it turns to the eastward, excavating its
course through the limestone and gypsum beds, between that
lake and Cayuga. From all examinations I have made, there
appears to be an ancient valley, filled with drift, between the
northern end of Seneca Lake and Ontario ; and yet, notwith-
standing this, the stream has excavated harder materials, and
taken a much more circuitous route to Lake Ontario. The
same explanation may be given of Canandaigua and the outlets
of other lakes.
As an analogous case, we may compare the ravine of St.
Davids and the whirlpool, with that of Iroudequoit, a few
miles east of Rochester. The Genesee river, after leaving
the gorge at Mount Morris, flows in the bottom of an ancient
valley to within a short distance of Rochester, where it enters
a new channel. This channel is narrow, with almost perfect
mural banks, and nowhere contains deposits of drift. On the
lake shore, about two miles east of the mouth of the Genesee,
we find a broad and deep ravine, known as the Iroudequoit
bay. This ravine is excavated to an unknown depth below
the level of Lake Ontario. The Iroudequoit creek which
takes its rise in the southern part of the county, flows through
this ravine for a few miles before reaching the lake. This
ravine pref^ents a very dilferent appearance from either that of
the Genesee below Rochester, or of the Niagara, and no one
could suppose that the present stream had ever excavated such
118 HalVs Remarks on Niagara Falls
a channel. At the lake shore, it has a broad opening with
sloping sides, and appears mnch like a bay worn by the action
of the sea, while perhaps a stream was flowing in at the same
place. It appears very natural to suppose that this may at
one time have been the continuation of the ancient valley of
the Genesee, which was commenced south of Dansville, and
continued northward as the land was upraised above the sea.
Now had the sea ever washed the base of the cliffs at Lew-
iston long enough to allow of the excavation of this gorge of
the Niagara, we should find some evidence of its sojourn there,
in the shape of a beach, or rounded pebbles ; but we find
nothing of the kind. The continuance of a line of coast of
sea or lake may be determined comparatively by the charac-
ter of the materials along its margin ; whether they are com-
pletely rounded, or still much angular ; or if rounded, whether
the forms are very much flattened. But in the case before us
we find nothing at a greater elevation than the ridge road, or
lake ridge, which, from its nature and contained remains, must
have been the boundary of an ancient lake.
Other examples might be cited, but these appear to me suf-
ficient as an explanation of causes why the Niagara did not
take its course from the whirlpool through the ravine filled
with gravel, rather than excavate a new channel from the
rock.
We come now to the consideration of the argument that
the chasm of Niagara has been worn by the sea, previous to,
or during the elevation of this part of the country above its
level. In the absence of direct proof, we must resort to anal-
ogy, and relying on this mode, we find that all indentations
or ravines, excavated in the face of sea cliff's, have a broad or
trumpet-mouthed opening toward the sea, and recede abruptly
to a point. They never present a long, narrow ravine, of
equal width ; and when of a length at all approaching Ni-
agara, they have an opening many times broader than this at
Lewiston. I might cite numerous examples of ravines exca-
vated by the sea, aided by a stream coming in at right angles,
but none of these are of the character of Niagara. In such
cases they are broad enough to allow the stream to flow
and the Geology of the Surrounding Country. 119
through the bed, leaving waterwom materials along the sides,
monuments of the wearing action of the waves. In the
Niagara/chasm there are no pebbles, boulders, or gravel ; the
river occupies nearly the whole width at the bottom, allowing
a talus of angular fragments of the rocks fallen from above.
The valley of the Genesee, from Rochester to Dansville,
affords a good example of a ravine excavated during the
emergence of land from beneath the sea ; but this valley is
broad, and partially filled with drift, the sides sloping gradu-
ally and for the most part covered with deep soil, partially
from decomposition and disintegration of the rocks beneath,
but principally from transported materials.
The small amount of wearing accomplished by a stream
during the period of our observation might incline us to
doubt the possibility of any body of water having excavated
its channel backwards for a length of seven miles, and to a
depth of from three to five hundred feet. But if the period
of one life be sufficient to admit of observation proving the
smallest amount of recession^ then it is only requisite that we
should carry on the process for an indefinite period, to accom-
plish the utmost that we require ; or, that we extend back-
ward our imagination regarding time, in order to prove what
is already accomplished. Now it is attested, within the re-
corded observations of those residing in the vicinity of Niaga-
ra, that the falls have receded within their recollection. If
then it is proved that this ravine could not have been excava-
ted by the sea during the emergence of the land, we have
only this mode of operation left to account for its formation.
From analogous facts, we learn that it only requires an ele-
vation of the drift, filling up the old channel, to be greater
than that of the rocky strata, in order to turn the water in
that direction, and cause it to form a new channel. We
have only to suppose the ravine, from the whirlpool to St.
Davids, filled, as it now is, with drift, to such a height as to
prevent the water from flowing in that direction, and the con-
sequence would be, as I said before, that it would seek an
outlet at the lowest point along the terrace, which appears to
have been in the direction of Lewiston. Here the water
120 HalVs Remarks on Niagara Falls
commenced the work of excavation, cutting down the higher
strata, and rapidly imdermining and removing those below.
It is only necessary to refer to the accompanying section, in
order to discover what materials the river had to work upon
at this period.
It is impossible that there could ever have been a perpen-
dicular fall of the whole height of the cliff at Lewiston, for
the limestone at the top, being so much thinner than at the
present falls, would soon be broken down by the pressure of
the immense body of water precipitated over its edge upon
the shale below. It may even be doubted whether the shale
would be excavated fast enough to form a perpendicular fall,
and it is probable that the water would be projected over a
declivity of the upper shale (No. 7,) to the limestone below,
which together with the higher layers of the sandstone would
form the crest of a second fall. From this again the water
would be precipitated as far as the sandstone, (No. 2,) where
a third fall would be formed. Thus, instead of a single fall
of three hundred and fifty feet, we should have the whole
height divided into three falls, at some distance from each
other. In consequence of the thinness of the upper limestone,
that fall would recede faster than either of those below it ;
and the middle faster than the lower one. Even under these
circumstances, the wearing action would go on much faster
than at present. Finally, however, the recession would be-
come less and less rapid, from the thickening of the limestone
above ; and from this cause, the two lower falls having the
same resistance to overcome as at first, would gradually ap-
proach the upper, till the whole became one.
At the same time there are other circumstances to be taken
into consideration, and among the most important of these
will be the dip of the strata and the ascent of the bed of the
stream ; both together tending to bring the strata down to
the level of the water as Ave progress southward. This fact
has also an important bearing upon the rate of recession ; for
while a hard mass remains at a considerable height above
water, with a soft one below, the excavation of the softer one
and undermining of the upper hard one, tends to the recession
and the Geology of the Surrounding Country. 121
much more rapidly than if the whole were of uniform char-
acter. Thus it must have been that the fall over the sand-
stone, (Nc^ 2,) receded much more rapidly while there was a
considerable thickness of shale below, than when it approach-
ed the level of the water. This would happen after the falls
had retreated about three miles, or nearly to the whirlpool.
At this point the recession would go on very slowly for a long
period, for this hard mass, being at the level of the water,
would effectually suspend the undermining process. Even at
the present time the mass may be seen stretching into the
river from either side beyond the other rocks, and at the point
where it crosses, producing a fall of eight or ten feet within
a few rods.
After this long and almost stationary period at the whirl-
pool, the recession would again go on more rapidly ; soft ma-
terials being presented at the river level to be excavated by
the force of the falling water, which would thus undermine
the harder mass above.
When the cascade had receded to near its present position,
another pause similar to that at the whirlpool would occur,
from the approach of the higher layers of sandstone, (No. 4.)
and the hard limestone, (No. 6,) to the surface of the water.
There are various proofs of this halting, both in the form of
the chasm below the present fall, and from the fact that this
lower limestone still remains in place ; for it is seen that
having passed a few feet beneath the water at the cascade,
it supports large fragments of the upper limestone fallen from
above.
The conclusion then, seems inevitable, that the river has
been the great agent in excavating its own chaimel, from near
the escarpment between Lewiston and Queenston, to the
present position of the cataract ; that the recession has been
aided by the character of the rocks, presenting alternate hard
and soft strata ; — and that the descent was overcome, not by
one perpendicular fall, but by several, produced by the suc-
cessive harder layers. In support of this latter assertion, a
single analogous case will furnish stronger evidence than a
long argument.
16
122 ; HalVs Remarks on Niagara Falls
The course of the Oak Orchard creek, in Orleans County,
is over the same strata, and furnishes direct confirmation of
the succession of falls and rapids, precisely in the manner I
have just enumerated. But as this is little known, I will ad-
duce that of the Genesee river, in its descent from Rochester
to Lake Ontario.
In consequence of the dip of the strata, or from its absence,
the hard, quartzose sandstone (No. 2,) of the Niagara section
does not appear in the Genesee river. On entering the river
from the lake, we find an open channel for five miles, where
the river descends perpendicularly for about one hundred feet
from the top of the sandstone, No. 4. The hard limestone
layer, or one filling the place of that at Niagara, has retreated
a quarter of a mile farther up the river, where it forms a fall
of twenty five feet. This recession of the limestone, beyond
the sandstone, is owing to a mass of green shale below it,
twentythree feet thick, while at Niagara the same shale is but
four feet thick. From this place to the upper fall, about a
mile and a half distant, we have a rapid stream. This fall is
one hundred and ten feet high, and over precisely the same
rocks as the Niagara fall at present, viz. Nos. 7 and 8 of sec-
tion, the Niagara shale and limestone. The limestone at the
top of the fall is much thinner than that at Niagara, in conse-
quence of the less recession into the mass, as well as from
being thinner as a whole. We have here a case precisely
analogous to Niagara as I have supposed it to have been for-
merly.
Had there been a quantity of water flowing down the
Genesee equal to the Niagara, the upper fall would have been
excavated farther backward, and the lower fall, in all proba-
bility entirely obliterated, presenting a rapid current from the
upper fall to the present site of the Rochester landing. There
appears here positive proof that there never has been so large
a body of water passing down the Genesee as down the Ni-
agara, and the concurring testimony is to the efi'ect that the
wearing action has been far less. The recession of the lower
falls at Rochester would add little or nothing to the height of
the upper ; for the ascent of the river bed, and the dip of the
and the Geology of the Surrounding Country. 123
strata, would cause the disappearance of the whole beneath
the water, before reaching that point.
In support of the hypothesis that streams do cut back their
channels, we may adduce sufficient evidence. An observation
of the last four or five years upon the waterfalls of Western
New York, has furnished positive evidence of their recession.
Among these may be noticed the falls on Jacock's run, near
Genesee, and Fall brook, a few miles further south, both of
which have evidently receded, from the undermining of the
platform over which the water is precipitated. The amount
during this time is very small, but sufficient to be appreciated.
The lower falls of Portage furnish another example of reces-
sion, where large masses have been removed, the channel
deepened, and cut backwards many feet in the space of four
years.
Lateral streams flowing into ravines or river courses, furnish
the most palpable evidence of the excavating power of water.
The channel of Wolf creek, which comes into the Genesee
through a perpendicular wall of rock, is a good example of
this kind, where the evidence is conclusive that the excavat-
ing power is alone due to the stream. The junction of a
small stream with the Genesee, on the west side, below Roch-
ester, furnishes another example of this power. This stream
has cut its channel through soft shale for fifty feet or more, a
bed of limestone eighteen feet thick, a bed of shale of equal
thickness, and below this another bed of limestone nearly
equal to the upper one. Many more examples of a similar
kind might be named, on the Seneca and Cayuga lakes, and
their valleys continued to the south.
A remarkable fact connected with these lateral water courses
is that their dimensions bear some proportion to their present
quantity of water. And although the actual quantity flowing
in any stream may seem insufficient to excavate its bed, yet I
believe, generally, the largest streams will be found in the
largest ravines, and the small lateral streams have always a
proportionately smaller channel. If in any case we find the
stream debouching into the lake, river, or valley, through a
chasm with nearly perpendicular sides, and little or no wider
124 HalVs Remarks on Niagara Falls
than it is farther up the stream, we may infer that the action
of the sea has had nothing to do with its excavation.
So far as our present knowledge extends, regarding the
mode of excavation by streams, conjointly with the action of
the sea upon cliffs, I consider the question regarding Niagara
as settled ; both by the analogy thus afforded, and by the ex-
amples of streams passing over the same succession of rocks ;
as the Oak Orchard creek and the Genesee river. The nar-
rowness of the chasm from Lewiston to the site of the present
cascade, the nearly perpendicular sides, and the absence of
drift within its banks, are strong negative facts in support of
the proposition. The evidence that the falls are now reced-
ing, and the incontestible proof that they have receded con-
siderably since this region has been inhabited, are positive
facts in favor of the hypothesis. Within four years, a large
triangular mass has disappeared from the top of the American
fall, and the outline is becoming more ciu'ved. At several
successive periods, large masses have fallen from the table
rock, on the Canada side, which has considerably changed the
outline of the fall.
There is still further evidence that the waters of the Ni-
agara river have once extended much nearer to the brow of
the escarpment than they do at present. The nature of this
evidence I pointed out in my report on the fourth Geological
District of New York, in 1838, pages 271, 272, and 273. At
that time, I was not aware that the same phenomena had
before been noticed, though I have since learned that the ex-
istence of fresh water deposits in Goat Island had been men-
tioned some years previous. Whether the important inference
had been deduced from this fact or not, I do not know.
Goat Island stands upon the top of the precipice separating
the two falls ; it is formed by the accumulation of gravel,
sand, and clay, upon the surface of the limestone, and is evi-
dently a portion of a once much more extensive deposit.
Upon the southern side of this island, where there is an es-
carpment, the thickness of tlie mass is about twentyfive feet.
The upper half of the deposit consists of coarse gravel and
sand, with abundance of fresh water shells of the genera
and the Geology of the Surrounding Country. 125
Unio, Cyclas, Limnea, Planorbis, Valvata, and Melania ; the
same both in genera and species as those now inhabiting the
river and lakes. The occurrence of these shells, in this situ-
ation, about twentyfive feet higher than the top of the fall,
proves the existence of a river or lake at an elevation suffi-
cient to allow of such a deposition, for this accumulation of
shells and gravel bears all the evidence of a fluviatile deposit.
During the past season, in company with my friend, Mr.
Lyell, I re-examined this region, and upon the east side of the
river, in a terrace about the same elevation as Goat Island, we
discovered the Cyclas, Valvata, ifec. which had been thrown
from an excavation made several years since. At the same
place, a tooth and some bones of the Mastodon were discover-
ed eleven feet beneath the fluviatile deposit. Farther north-
ward, and more than half a mile north of Goat Island, in
another excavation, we discovered similar shells. We also
noticed the continuation of this terrace, or one about the same
elevation, as far north as the whirlpool. We did not search
for shells in it at this place ; but from its character and posi-
tion there can be little doubt but it is a continuation of the
same deposit, and probably will be found to contain the same
shells. Now in order to raise the water of the river to suffi-
cient height to make this deposit, it w^ould require a barrier
for the water at some distance north of the whirlpool. On
the other side of the river a similar terrace exists, but this I
have not particularly examined.* Now these banks or terra-
ces on either side of the river, and that of Goat Island, are
clearly not deposits made in this form, but the remains of a
once much more extensive one. During the time of its de-
position the river occupied this valley, having its barrier far
towards Lewiston. In the bed of this expanded river or lake,
much as it now is above the rapids, this deposit was made,
covering the whole extent ; but from the wearing back of the
fall it has been carried off, the margin only being left on
either side, and a small portion of the central part forming
Goat Island. The following diagram will exhibit the posi-
• iMr. Hayes speaks of the terraces on both sides of the river, as containing
fresh water deposits. Amer. Journal of Science, Vol. XXXV, No. I.
126
HalVs Remarks on Niagara Falls
tion of this fresh water deposit. It is a cross section of the
river at the falls.
a. The terrace with shells on the eastern side.
h. Goat Island, c. The terrace on the Canada side.
d. The ancient drift, L. Limestone. S. Shale.
From its present position, it seems to have been a continu-
ous deposit, the greater part of which has been removed.
The mode of its formation can be well illustrated by referring
to Fig. 1, which is intended to represent what is now going
on above the rapids, in the broad expansion of the river.
a. a. represents the fluviatile deposit made by materials
brought down by the current, and doubtless mingled with a
large accumulation of shells of Unio, Melania, Anculotus, &c.
as these shells are abundant above the falls, and large num-
bers of the shells of Uniones are constantly brought down the
rapids during the summer season.
The single terrace containing shells is not the only one, for
on the eastern side, at lower elevations, there are in succession
two others, which seem to be remains of the deposit in the
river bed, as it successively excavated its barrier to the north,
and receded towards its present position. For the greater
part of the distance from the falls to Black Rock, on the east-
ern side there is a terrace or bank a few feet higher than the
river, which may have originally limited its waters when it
stood at the level indicated b}'" the fresh water deposit of Goat
Island. Near Black Rock, and bordering the valley of the
Tonawanda, there is a terrace some twenty feet higher,
which appears to have been the boundary of the river or lake
at a still earlier period ; but with these we have, at present,
nothing to do. The existence of the fluviatile deposit of
Goat Island, and at the same level on the eastern side of the
and the Geology of the Surrounding Country. 127
river, requires for its elucidation the existence of water stand-
ing at a level somewhat higher, in order to allow of the de-
posit being made in the bed of the stream. To accomplish
this, a barrier is required further north than the whirlpool,
and about the height of the surface of limestone between this
and Lewiston. The occurrence of successive terraces below
this one, proves that the drainage to the present point was not
effected suddenly.
There is another fact which should be noticed, as proving
the existence of a current from south to north, during the de-
position of the materials forming Goat Island. The pebbles,
at least large numbers of them, are of the limestone of Black
Rock, and the harder layers of the saliferous formation, like
the rock in place at the upper end of Grand Island. The
surface of the rock, on which the deposit forming Goat Island
is made, is smoothed and scratched, as are the surrounding
surfaces both in the rapids and on either bank of the river.
The deposit is of greatest thickness towards the fall, and thins
entirely out at its eastern extremity.
There is another indentation on the eastern bank of the
Niagara, below the whirlpool. This has been cited as a case
where the small stream coming in, is insufficient to account
for such an excavation.* It occurs at the junction of Bloody
run and the river, and bears the strongest evidence of having
been produced by the common agents, frost and water. The
wearing action of the stream alone is probably insufficient to
produce this short ravine, which extends a few rods back from
the margin of the river bank ; but when we take into con-
sideration the fact that the water penetrates all the fissures of
the rock, and then, during fall and winter, expands by freez-
ing, we shall find means of explaining the mode of operation.
At the falls, the recession is by the undermining and breaking
down of the upper masses ; the action of frost is not to be
taken into consideration, as the water never freezes. Now I
consider it as an established fact, that small streams, which
freeze during winter, will excavate their beds more rapidly
• Am. Journal of Jscience, Vol. XXXV, No. I.
128 HalVs Remarks on Niagara Falls
t
in proportion, than large bodies of water, which never freeze.
It appears to me that the indentation at Bloody run is not
greater than might be expected to have taken place while
the main channel receded to its present position.
Whatever facts and arguments may be advanced to prove
the existence of phenomena indicating the former action of
the sea in excavating the Niagara channel, and whatever ob-
jections may be advanced for or against other theories, I am
fully of opinion that the existence of the falls and the Niagara
river, in their present position, is of very recent date, geologi-
cally speaking. I cannot resist the belief that at some previ-
ous period the waters of the upper lakes were discharged into
Ontario at its western extremity, and that subsequently, from
causes which at present I have not facts sufficient to explain,
the course was changed, and the outlet made through Lake
Erie. Previous to this time, there may have been a small
stream flowing in the direction of the present Niagara.
We come now to consider the future recession of Niagara
falls, and its consequences. This is a subject on which many
speculations have been hazarded, but no one appears to have
undertaken the calculation with a full knowledge of the geol-
ogy of the district, or to have taken into account the many
disturbing influences. At the present time, the clifl" over
which the water is precipitated, is nearly equally divided be-
tween thick bedded limestone and soft, disintegrating shale.
It is by the action of the spray from the falling water upon
the shale, undermining and leaving the limestone unsupported,
which falls down by its own weight, fhat the falls recede from
their present position. Now if we believe the statements of
those who have resided at the falls, the recession has been
about fifty yards within the last forty years ; but from all the
data I have been able to obtain, it appears to be much too
great an estimate ; indeed, it is extremely questionable if the
fall has receded as many feet within that time. The central
portion of the Canada fall recedes more rapidly than any other
part, for here the greatest force of the river is exerted. We
know, likewise, from the testimony of all residents at this
place, that the American fall is becoming more curved in its
and the Geology of the Surrounding Country. 129
outline, whereas formerly it was nearly in a straight line.
The successive descent of large masses of limestone, and the
still continued overhanging of the table rock, prove very con-
clusively the unremitting action of water and air upon the
shale below.
In the absence of established landmarks, we are compelled
to leave the rate of recession unsettled for the present ; and
the only mode by which this can be determined accurately is,
by a systematic survey and triangulation of the form of the
cascade, and the establishment of permanent marks of refer-
ence for future observers.
Leaving out of view the time or rate of recession, we have
sufficient data to establish Avith certainty the future changes
which will supervene, allowing the recession to go on as it is
now doine. The lower half of the rock at the cascade, or
about eighty feet, is of soft shale, the limestone above being
of equal thickness ; higher still is about forty feet of thin,
bedded limestone, forming the rapids. These different rocks
are represented in the section as 7, 8 and 8', respectively.
Now these beds dip to the south at the rate of about twenty-
five feet in the mile, and the declivity of the bed of the river
is about fifteen feet in the mile, from the falls to Lewiston.
It follows, therefore, that as the falls recede, there will be a
less amount of shale above water, owing to the dip, and to
this must be added the amount of declivity in the river bed,
both together making forty feet. So that when the fall has
receded one mile, the surface of the water will stand at k.^
or a point in the shale half way between the present surface
of the water and the bottom of the limestone. Going on at
this rate for another mile would take away from the fall forty
feet more of the shale, so that the surface of the river would
stand at p. or the base of the limestone.
The cataract would then have a solid wall of limestone to
wear down, the river beneath protecting, in a great measure,
the undermining action upon the shale. During this time,
and at the end of the first mile, the falls would have arrived
at the present site of the commencement of the rapids, and
thus about forty feet more of limestone would be added to
17
130 HalVs Remarks on Niagara Falls
the height ; unless from its thin bedded character it continued
to recede faster, and thus continue a rapid. In this case,
there would be a fall of one hundred and twenty feet at the
end of the first mile {i. k.) ; and one of eighty feet (o. p.) at
the end of the second mile.
At this period, then, we are to contemplate the cataract of
Niagara as having receded two miles, the shale having disap-
peared beneath the river, and the cascade presenting a solid
wall of limestone eighty feet high, and a rapid of forty or fifty
feet (o. m.) beyond. The recession would then go on very
gradually, and so soon as masses from this clifi" have fallen
down to fill up the river bed, as they inevitably will in a
great measure, then the base will be protected so effectually
that little influence will be exerted by the force of the water.
Eventually, however, the clifl* will be broken down, and huge
fragments piled up below, until the cataract will be nearly
lost amid them. This state of things will continue for a long
time, the height gradually diminishing, till the river has cut
its way back for two miles further, when there will be no
thick bedded limestone above water, and the higher beds will
form a rapid as before.
This point of meeting, between the surface of the river
and the top of the thick bedded limestone, will be about one
hundred feet lower than the summit of the present cascade,
and as there will be forty feet of rapids in the thin bedded
limestone within a short space, as there now is, it follows that
there will be added to the descent of the river beyond the
rapids, one hundred feet more than at present, as the surface
of the limestone has dipped to that amount. The whole fall
in the river at that time, from Lake Erie to the point of junc-
tion between the limestone and water below the rapids {h. o.),
will be about one hundred and sixty feet. The distance
between this point and Lake Erie is occupied by nearly uni-
form soft layers, and after a partial wearing down of the lime-
stone forming the rapids, the descent will be equally distributed
over the whole extent of sixteen miles, giving a uniform de-
clivity of about ten feet in the mile, or one third less than
the present declivity in the bed of the river from the falls to
and the Geology of the Surrounding Country. 131
Lewiston. From the nature of the bed cf the river for fifteen
miles below Lake Erie, it may be doubted whether this rapid
descent along the whole distance would be continued ; for
the stream, having no heavy blocks of rock to remove, would
keep its channel clear with a far less declivity ; and should
this prove the case here, we might still have a fall of a few
feet, at the outlet of Lake Erie, over the limestone succeeding
the saliferous group.
Whether such a fall would occur at the outlet of Lake Erie,
depends on the solution of the problem regarding the acquired
declivity in the bed of the river below Lake Erie. Which-
ever way it may occur it will make no material difference in
the great result, which will be either a continuous rapid
stream from Lake Erie to Lewiston, or a rapid stream with a
fall at the outlet of Erie. If present causes continue to ope-
rate as now, such will be the consummation, the finale, of
the grand cataract of Niagara.
It is unnecessary here to follow on this recession gradually
from the outlet of Lake Erie to the final drainage of a great
portion of its waters. The views which have been enter-
tained of the sudden drainage of this or any of the upper
lakes, and a deluging of the country on the north and east,
are no longer considered as tenable by any one, and even
if Lake Erie could be drained suddenly, it would cause no
deluge of any importance. If the whole lake were at once
placed upon Lake Ontario, it would only elevate its surface
by about one hundred and fifty feet, so that its extent would
scarcely exceed the limits of the ancient lake ridge, and the
outlet would still be the valley of the St. Lawrence.
In calculating the future recession of Niagara falls, there
are many disturbing influences to be considered. At the
present time, by means of the Erie and Welland canals, large
quantities of water, which formerly flowed over the fall, are
returned to Lake Ontario by other than the natural channels.
The Illinois canal, at the southern extremity of Lake Michigan,
will drain a large amount of water in that direction, which
will find its way to the ocean through the Mississippi river
and Gulf of Mexico. Extensive improvements have been
132 HalVs Remarks on Niagara Falls
contemplated at the falls, and the erection of manufactories,
by which great quantities of water from above the rapids will
be returned to the Niagara channel below the falls. Thus far
the country supplying water to the upper lakes has been but
little changed by the hand of cultivation, the primeval forests
still clothe the surface, and evaporation to a great extent is
prevented. This cannot always remain so ; the advancing
settlements will yet penetrate even the wilderness bordering
Lake Superior, and the opening of the surface to the influence
of the sun's rays will greatly diminish the supply of water
flowing into the tributaries. These causes will sensibly di-
minish the quantity passing down the natural outlet ; and the
mighty Niagara, the '' Thunder of Waters,^^ is destined to be
at certain seasons but a diminutive representative of its former
grandeur.
Note. Since writing the foregoing paper, I have referred to
some notes and correspondence with Mr. Roy, Government
Engineer at Toronto, U. C. Prom levels which he has made
from Lake Ontario to the Q,ueenston heights, at several places,
he says the crest of the terrace constantly declines going
westward from the river, while the base continues at the same
elevation. This fact is opposed to information I had before
received, and to the general belief. If this be substantiated,
and I have every reason to believe the statement, it may ma-
terially alter the reasoning in regard to the former recession,
of the falls, and the manner in which the chasm has been
excavated.
From the Niagara river there is a declination of the crest of
the terrace eastward, so that at Rochester its summit is about
sixtyfive feet below the level of Lake Erie ; giving in this
direction a descent of about one hundred feet in eighty miles.*
I have no data for determining the rate of declination wester-
ly, but whatever it may be, it proves the course of the Niagara
to be upon or near the highest part of this terrace. If this
inequality of the surface was produced by some force after
• See New York Geological Reports.
and the Geology of the Surrounding Country. 13
't>
the strata became consolidated, there might have been pro-
duced a rent in this direction, as in the diagram which repre-
sents a transverse section.
This may have been the first cause of directing the water
in its present channel, which was afterwards widened by the
river. There seems some reason to suppose this may have
been the' case, from the general direction of the chasm, being
at right angles with the strike of the strata. If this be true,
however, the fissure must have been extremely narrow, and
still have left to the river the work of excavation, though
under very different circumstances. The reasoning in regard
to the existence of a depression previous to the excavation of
a deep channel, will still hold true, as well as that regarding
the fresh water deposits, and the terrace extending to the
whirlpool. The future recession of the cataract cannot be
affected in any manner by this fact, for if such a rent ever
existed, it seems not to have extended as far as the present
site of the falls, for all the testimony is to the effect that the
process of retrogression goes on by the action of the water
upon the shale, which undermines the limestone. If there
was a fissure in the course of the Niagara, it did not reach so
deep as the bed of the river, for it seems quite certain that
the thick bed of sandstone (No. 2, of section,) has never been
excavated very deeply below the present surface of the river.
If these views resfarding the elevation of the terrace are
found to hold true, it will aid in establishing the opinion be-
fore expressed, that the present channel of Niagara is of
recent date. I have long believed that the former outlet of
the great Lakes was by the western end of Lake Ontario,
though I have not been able to make investigations to the
extent desired in order to establish that opinion.
The period when the disturbance of the strata took place,
is one of great importance, and may aid in determining the
comparative age of the Niagara channel, and the period of the
drift. That the former was subsequent, however, does not
admit of doubt. I am not aware how far the terrace contin-
ues to decline westward from the Niagara river, but it is quite
certain that the limestone rises before going as far west as the
134 Perkins^ Remarks on Fossil Bones
head of Lake Erie ; for we find crossing this lake near its
western extremity, an antidinal axis which extends northward
into Canada, and southward entirely across the State of Ohio.
Now this may have happened at the same period as the disturb-
ance or uplift, further east, and the production of this western
bJiis may have resulted in turning the course of the outlet, and
the formation of the Niagara river ; but more facts are required
before any speculations can be offered upon this subject.
Art. XL — note TO THE EDITORS RESPECTING FOSSIL
BONES FROM OREGON. By Henry C. Perkins, M. D., of
Newbury port.
Gentlemen, — In the last number of the American Journal
of Science may be found the description of a fossil os humeri^
of gigantic dimensions, which, with the knowledge I posses-
sed at the date of that paper, I did not presume to name, al-
though fully persuaded that the animal to which it belonged
should be referred to the order Edentata. Having seen, within
a few days, in the Proceedings of the American Philosophical
Society, the description by Dr. Harlan, of Philadelphia, of a
fossil humerus very like to that in my possession, I am indu-
ced to offer this note for publication.
The fossil humerus described by Dr. Harlan in the paper
above referred to, formed part of a large collection of fossil
bones obtained by Mr. A. Koch, in Benton county, Missouri.
It was " tv/enty inches long, and fourteen in diameter ; of a
massive structure and deeply grooved by the muscular attach-
ments. In place of a foramen, as in the humerus of the
Megalonyx, the exterior surface, near the elbow joint has a
deep groove for the origin of the flexor muscles. The con-
dyles are of great breadth, as in the Megatherium. The infe-
rior articulating surface consists of two facets, one exterior
and convex, the other concavo-convex, admitting a gingly-
mous and rocking motion." If now we substitute eleven
and a quarter in the place of " fourteen," Dr. Harlan has, in
from Oregon. 135
the above quotation, with great accuracy, described my fossil,
although he has omitted to mention a marked projection upon
the outer part of the bone, which is to be found on my speci-
men, and figured in Prof Silliman's Journal. It is possible,
however, that this process may have been broken off in the
fossil he was describing, as they are spoken of by that gen-
tleman as ^' more or less perfectly preserved."
In the collection of Mr. Koch there '' are 2 fossil humeri, 2
tibiae, 2 portions of the radius, 2 of the clavicle, parts of seve-
ral ribs, 2 vertebrae, a cubitus, 24 teeth, 8 of them in their
sockets, 2 fragments of a lower jaw with 2 and 3 teeth in
situ, 2 fragments of the upper jaw, 5 ungueal phalanges, a
sternum of 4 articulated pieces, and a part of the ileum and
sacrum."
From the near approach in the form of these bones to those
of the Orycteropus, Dr. Harlan proposes to name his animal
the Orycterotherium Missouriensis. From the striking re-
semblance which appears to me to exist between my fossil
and the humerus of the Ant-eater, and more especially from
the inference I have drawn, that the animal of which it
formed a part must have been a digging aninial, (opux7<^p, a
digger, and ^rip'm, animal,) I know of no appellation which
could have been more appropriate than the one proposed. I
regret exceedingly that Dr. Harlan's description was unaccom-
panied with any drawings, as this would have enabled me to
determine positively whether these two animals belonged to
the same genus. I strongly suspect, however, for the reason
above given, that such was the fact, and with pleasure adopt
his generic name. And as his species is designated from the
locality, and the locality whence mine was obtained is in an-
other territory, the cast, which will shortly be placed in the
Cabinet of your Society, will not, I think, be inappropriately
named (for the present at least), if it be labelled, the right
humerus of Orycterotherium Oregonensis.
Allow me to make one remark in relation to the tooth de-
scribed and figured in the American Journal. I had supposed,
until very recently, that the Mylodon of Owen, and the
Megalonyx of Dr. Harlan were the same. From a compari-
136 Perkins^ Remarks on Fossil Bones.
son of the figure of the tooth of Mylodon, in the Penny Cy-
clopedia, (and this is the only figure of the tooth I have been
able to find,) with that found in the Medical and Physical
Researches, this opinion would seem to have been erroneous.
Whether the tooth figured by me does or does not belong to
Mylodon, it appears to be essentially different, in form and
structure, from that of the Megalonyx ; and as the teeth
found among the fossils described by Dr. Harlan are said '' to
be very similar to those of the Megalonyx," I am left in doubt
whether my tooth and humerus belonged to the same animal,
and know of no means of removing this uncertainty, until an
opportunity presents of comparing them together, or examin-
ing the tooth by the light of Owen's Odontography.
One word in reference to the dentate vertebra spoken of in
the American Journal. Although I have only the body of
the vertebra, which has left upon it, however, the roots of the
transverse processes, I believe the foramen for the passage of
the spinal marrow must have been much larger than it ap-
pears to have been in the vertebrae of the Orycterotherium ;
and from its strong resemblance in form and size to that of
the Elephant, I would now refer it to the fossil species of this
genus.
The fragments of bone belonging to the extremities of
some gigantic animal, to which I referred in the Journal, I
had hoped, ere this, to have formed some definite opinion
upon ; this however, for the want of proper facihties, I have
been unable to accomplish. It is my intention to exhibit the
collection before the Association of American Geologists, at
their next meeting, in April, when, without doubt, they will
all be assigned to their appropriate places.
Very respectfully yours,
Henry C. Perkins, M. D.
Boston, Jan. 25, 1842.
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CHARACTERS OF SHELLS TO BE FULLY DESCRIBED IN THE
NEXT NUMBER OF THE JOURNAL.
Helix sub-planUy Binney. H. testA subdiscoidea, fuliginoaA aut corneo-rufes-
cente, nitente ; spira depressa ; anfractibus quinque vel sex ; aperturi semiluoari,
traniversa; labro simplici, acuto ; basi piano ; umbilico parvo.
Lat. I poll. Habitat. Tennessee.
Helix tenui-ttriatdf Binney. H. testa depressa, carinat^, umbilicatS, albido-
corne^ ; anfractibus septera, oblique striatis; aperturd angust4, depress^ ; labro
■ubreflexo ; basi con vexo.
Lat. \ poll. Habitat. Tennessee.
Helix penicillatay Gould. H, testA sub-giobos4, fragili, lucidA, Iserigatd, infra
convexa ; anfractibus quatuor, inornatis vel lineis fuscis longitudinalibus, inter-
ruptis diversissim^ fasciata ; labro acuto ; columella antice roseo tincta.
Long. .35, lat. .25, poll. Habitat. Ins. Cuba.
Helicina glabra, Gould. H. testA depresso-globosd, pallide corneS, laevi,
lucid^, subtusconvexiusculd ; anfractibus quinque, tenui-striaiis; aperlurft ovatS,
labro acuto ; columellae callo late reflexo, minute grauulato ; subtus line^ volvente
dente marginal! productd.
Lat. .3, alt. .2, poll. Habitat. Ins. Cuba.
Pupa carinata, Gould. P. testA minima, ovato-conica, luteo-cornesl ; anfrac-
tibus quinque Iseribus, subcarinatis, ultimo acute carinato ; sutur^ profundi ;
apertura ampla, oblique semiovali, dentibus quinque instructii, quorum majori
postico, torso et bifjircato, duo ad columellam. uno in faucem, et uno ad labrura
positis; peristomate late et inequalitcr reflexo; umbilico minimo.
Long. .08, lat .05 poll. Habitat. Maryland.
Pupa (Siphonostoma) porrecta^ Gould. P. test^ gracillimS, fusiformi, glabrS,
ptUucida, maculis subquadratis ocscurk tessellata; anfractibus 20 et amplius,
ultimo disjuncto et valde porrecto; apertura campanulatd subqaadrata ; peria-
tomate albo, reflexo.
Long. .6 lat. .07 poll. Habitat. Ins. Cuba.
Pupa (Siphonostoma) lituus, Gould. P. testa lucide^, cylindracea, apice coni-
ca, decollata ; anfractibus circiter quindecim, tenuiter oblique striatis, ultimo
disjuncto et producto ; apertura alba, campanulatd, subquadrata, cervice contrac-
ts ; peristomate reflexo.
Long. .7, lat. .15, poll. Habitat. Ins. Cuba.
CycUstoma bicolor, Gould. C. testa elengala, ovato-cylindrace&,*pice obtusS ;
postice straminea, antice purpuroscente ; anfractibus quinque convexis ; apertura
circular), fauce rubiginosaL ; peristomate crasso, vald6 reflexo, postice abscisso ;
umbilico parvo ;operculo corneo.
Long. 1.1, lat. .5 poll. Habitat. Cuba.
Cyclostoma elathraturtit Gould. C. testa conico-cylindriceA, apice truncate,
cinereo-viridescens ; anfractibus tres ad quatuor, convexis, lineis numerosis in-
crementi acutis clathrata ; suturi crenulata : aperturii parva, sub-circulari ;
peristomate incrassato, baud reflexo : umbilico nullo ; opercnlo calcareo, lineis
incrementi elovalis, acutis.
Long. .35, lat. .2, poll. Habitat. Ins. Cuba.
Cyclostoma mahoganiy Gould. C. testA conico-cylindraceal, tenui, fulvA, apico
decollate; anfractibus 3 ad 4 convexis, striis tenuibus volventibus, lineisque
fuscis fulminanlibus, in fasclis dispositis; apertura ovata ; peristomate subre-
flexo ; umbilico parvo ; operculo corneo, tenui.
Long. 1, lat. .45, poll. Habitat. Ins. Cuba.
Cyclosiomd catenatum, Gould. C. test4 conico-lurritA, fulvo-viridescens; an-
fractibus 5 convexis, striis elevatis volventibus, fusco nrliculatis ; aperturS sub-
orbiculari, anfra« tu penullimo disjunct^ : peristomate reflexo, postice dentato ;
operculo albo, calcareo.
Long, i, lat. .4 poll. Habitat. Ins. Cuba.
Conus castreTisis^ Gould. C testA laevi, conicS, antic^ admodum constrict^ ;
spira ptanulatS, apice raamillatS, flamraulis radiantibus castaneis notatA , an-
fractibus 10, supra concavis ; colore ilhk, linais et mag^lis angulatis castaneis
rtticulatS ; basi castaneA.
Long. .3, lat. 1^, poll. Habitat.
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c
CONTENTS OF VOL. IV. NO. II.
Page.
Art. XII. Remarks upon Coral Formations in the Pacific ; with Sug-
gestions as to the Causes of their Absence in the same Parallels of
Latitude on the Coast of South America. By Joseph P. Couthouy. 137
Art. XIII. — Descriptions of some of the Species of Naked, Air-
Breathing Mollusca, inhabiting the United States. By Amos Bin-
ney I^
Art. XIV. — Additional Descriptions of, and Observations on, the
Fishes of Massachusetts. By D. Humphreys Storer, M. D. . 175
Art. XV. — An Inquiry into the Distinctive Characteristics of the Ab-
original Race of America. By Samuel George Morton, M. D. 190
Art. XVI. — Descriptions and Figures of the Araneides of the United
States. By Nicholas Marcellus Hentz 223
Art. XVII. — Descriptions of the Fishes of Lake Erie, the Ohio River
and their Tributaries. By Jared P. Kirtland, M. D. . . 231
Art. XVIIL— Description ®f a Species of Helix, newly observed in
the United States. By Amos Binney. ..... 241
Art, XIX.— Observations on the Habits of the Python Natalensis.
By Thomas S. Savage, M. D 242
Art. XX.— Observations on the Characters and Habits of the Ocel-
lated Turkey, (Meleagris Ocdlata^ Cuv.j By Samuel Cabot, Jr. M. D. 246
Art. XXI. — On the Existence of Siliceous ? Spicules in the Exterior
Rays of Actinia ; and Memoranda concerning the Siliceous Ani-
malcules of Boston. By G. W. Bailey 252
Art. XXII.— Enumeration of the Fishes of Brookhaven, Long Island,
with Remarks upon the Species Observed. By William O. Ayres. 255
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Couthouy on Coral Formations. 137
Art. XL — REMARKS UPON CORAL FORMATIONS IN THE
PACIFIC ; WITH SUGGESTIONS AS TO THE CAUSES OF
THEIR ABSENCE IN THE SAME PARALLELS OF LATI-
TUDE ON THE COAST OF SOUTH AMERICA. By Joseph P.
Couthouy. Read December 15, 1841.
[Continued from page 105.]
The conclusions to which I have been led by all the ob-
servations made among the coral islands of Polynesia, may be
summed up as follows : — firstlyj that the subsidence was not
continuous, but interrupted by long periods during which the
land, and after its disappearance, the reef, remained stationary,
and the successive terraces were formed ; secondly, that it
cpntiiiived, at least in certain places, up to a comparatively
recent dav, and ceased not long after the total submergence of
the pre-^'asting land ; thirdly, that there followed an indefi-
nite in/erval of repose, with the reef at a sufiicient depth
below the surface of the ocean, to enable the polypes to con-
struct the overhanging shelf whose fragments now strew the
upper plateau ; fourthly, that to this quiescent state ensued
one of re-elevation,* at a period of which, when the shelf
was considerably lower than the plateau now is, yet exposed
to the full violence of the surf, it was torn off and the frag-
ments carried to their present locality ; and lastly, that this
re-elevatory process is still going forward, not only in the
coral groups, but also in most of the volcanic ones of Poly-
nesia.
After what has been said, it is perhaps unnecessary to re-
mark further upon the first of these conclusions. As regards
the second, I will here briefly notice one of the facts on
which it rests. At Rose Island, a chain of coral reefs mostly
covered only at high tide, and small islets but a few feet
• There is one peculiarity in the sea or barrier reefs of all the volcanic islandi,
for which, unless it is to be attributed to the recentness of their elevation, I
can at present suggest no explanation. I refer to the entire absence upon them,
no matter how exposed may be their situation, of any fragmentary ridges, such
as are found at every I'aumotu, even where the distance from '.he outer plateaa
to the lagoon ii much less than the breadth of some barrier reefs.
18
xxi
0
13^^^^ Couthouy on Coral Formations
above water, principally loose rubble and sand, the whole
about a league in circuit, and situated twentyfive or thirty
leagues east of the Samoas — so recent was the formation that
besides the main entrance into the lagoon on the leeward side,
there were several small channels, others partially bridged
over, and some closed only at one extremity. Not a particle
of vegetation had yet made its appearance, elsewhere than on
the most elevated portion of one sandy knoll, which a solitary
shrub (a Pisonia, if I recollect right,) had begun to clothe
with verdure. In the shallow lagoon, it would seem as if
there had not elapsed since its formation a period sufficient for
the coral to have grown in any quantity, as only a few small
clusters were seen here and there, the bottom being almost
entirely a fine white coral sand, such as is common on the
beaches of those islands having shore reefs, and quite destitute
of the smooth, calcareous paste, deposited in most lagoons.
Scattered over this sand, were a number of boulders of vol-
canic rock, some of them so heavy that two men could not
raise them from the bottom, and precisely similar in appear-
ance and mineral structure to that constituting the mass of
the neighboring groups of Samoa and Tahiti. A specimen
weighing about twenty pounds was picked up in four feet
of water, among small rolled blocks of coral conglome-
rate. This circumstance appears to aflford conclusive evidence
that the main rock of the submerged island must be at no
great depth below the sandy bottom of the lagoon, since it
was evidently not long since acted upon by the surf, the only
imaginable power which could have placed these boulders in
their present situation. At the same time, that the islets
are now slowly emerging, is indicated by the whole surface
of the reef, which is so for elevated, that the corals have
nearly ceased to flourish, and are for the most part covered
with an incrustation of lime, which promises ere long to unite
the whole into an uniform consolidated mass.
That there was an interval of quiescence between the last
epoch of subsidence and that of re-elevation, is, I think,
proved not only by the construction of the marginal project-
ing shelf, which has evidently once existed on the upper
in the Pacific^ 6^c. 139
plateau, but by these elevated islands, like Tahiti and others,
having both shore and barrier reefs, which are raised to the
same level, and where a shore reef does not exist, by the de-
tached masses and clusters of living coral that are found at
those islands in only three or four feet of water, and within a
few yards of the beach, quite equalling in size any that are
found upon the sea reefs, which clusters must both have
grown at a considerably greater depth, and required a long
time to attain their present magnitude.
In the lectures to which allusion has been made, the island
of Tahiti was incorrectl}?' represented in ground plans of it
exhibited by Prof. Lyell, and also described by him, as sur-
rounded by a reef enclosing a continuous lagoon of nearly
uniform width between it and the shore. Of a fact so im-
portant in its geological bearings as the co-existence of a
fringing and lagoon-enclosing reef at this island, the distin-
guished lecturer was, I presume, not aware, inasmuch as it was
in no manner alluded to by him. There is scarcely any por-
tion of the reef which I have not visited, and so far from en-
circling the island, the lagoon only exists at intervals, and in
many of these a shore reef runs out so far as to leave but
a narrow boat channel between it and the outer one. Some-
times it terminates in a cul de sac ; in other places it commu-
nicates with the sea by two passages near its extremities, thus
isolating a portion of the outer reef, and there are parts of the
coast where for miles the two reefs appear to have united, and
there is no intervening canal ; so that the natives wade from
the beach to the breakers. It would be nearer the truth, to
state that instead of a continuous lagoon, there is a nearly
continuous fringing reef, surrounding the island and varying
from a few yards to more than a mile in width, and that the
lagoons merely form canals between this and the sea reef.
Like the latter, these shore reefs are in general very steep.
There is one in Pappeiti, the principal harbor, forming a sort
of natural pier, alongside of which a vessel can lie in thirty
or forty feet of water, so close that a person may step from
her channels, upon the reef, where it is not more than eighteen
inches or two feet deep.
140 Couthouy on Coral Formations
The island of Eimeo, lofty and broken like that of Tahiti,
from which it is distant between four and five leagues, is almost
entirely surrounded by a fringing reef, containing occasional
small lagoons inaccessible to any thing but a canoe, and often
having no entrance whatever. The same may be said of
several other islands in the Tahitian group. For these reefs
to have formed upon the shore and extended so far as in some
instances to be blended with the outer ones, there must as it
seems to me, have been a long period of rest between the
cessation of subsidence and the re-elevatory process, which it
is my belief has been for some time and is still going forward.
For this belief I now proceed to submit some of the reasons.
At almost every Paumotu visited, I found the shore of the
lagoon raised from eighteen to thirty inches, containing im-
bedded shells, and corals standing as they grew.
At Clermont Tonnerre Island, on the North shore of the la-
goon, there is a reef two feet above sea level, literally paved
with the shells of Tridacnse, imbedded precisely as in the
adjacent submerged plateau, and in a state of perfect preser-
vation, even as to color. At Honden Island, some two hun-
dred and twenty miles north-west of this, a similar raised
ledge borders the lagoon. At Raraka, three hundred miles
further west, on the plain between the windward ridge and
lagoon, which had a very slight ascent inland, corals both
sessile and arborescent, were met with in a normal position,
half a mile from the sea, and at about the same height above
it as the shells at Clermont Tonnerre. At King's Island, in
crossing from the leeward beach to the lagoon, several large
tracts of reef-rock were observed, full of imbedded Tridacnae,
and corals occupying their original locality. Similar appear-
ances were presented by several other islands, to which I
cannot refer at present.
The surface reef or upper terrace, every where bears evi-
dence of having been elevated higher than the natural growth
of the corals would raise it, in their scanty number and di-
minished size, and the calcareous incrustations now covering
the larger portion of the reef, to the extinction of the polypes.
At Waterland Island, the leeward reef is quite bare at low
in the Pacific, ^c. 141
water, and so bold that one may spring upon it from a boat
without wetting his feet. So trifling is the depth of water
on other reefs, that many arborescent and some even of the
sessile corals, have their superior portions so constantly expos-
ed that the polypes are all dead, while below a certain line
they still continue to flourish. In the lagoons, also, are fre-
quently seen clusters of Madrepore, whose extremities are
from an inch to a foot above water, which like those on the
terraces could have been constructed by the polypes, only
when continually covered by it.
At Christmas Island, the re-elevation has been so great, that
the lagoon, of sixty miles in circuit, is in no part, at half a mile
from shore, more than three feet deep, has hardly any where
over ten feet of water at high tide and is full of stfll shal-
lower patches, raised reef-rock, and corals. On the south-east
side, numerous lagoons from a quarter of a mile to a couple of
leagues in compass, originally no doubt deep hollows in the
principal one, have been formed by the elevation of their sur-
rounding bed above water. In some of these, though they
have no outlet, the tide continues to rise and fall regularly,
the water passing readily through the porous sand, but the
evaporation is such as to render them exceedingly salt. In
others, the water is entirely dried up, and the bottom covered
with a thick saline incrustation. The intervals between these
small lagoons and hollows, is sometimes the bare coral rock,
but more commonly coral sand and shells, containing an infi-
nite number of Echini, Spatangi, 6cc. imbedded. Near the
centre of the island are plains of perfectly level coral rock,
some of them a mile long by half a mile broad, raised eight
or ten feet above sea level, and covered with about a foot of
black porous earth. The magnitude of these rocks precludes
all idea of their having been torn from the reef like the large
blocks of similar composition that line the eastern coast. A
very remarkable character in the structure of this island is
the unusually great width of the two entrances, it being full
two miles, as will be seen by the accompanying sketch. The
fringing reef runs out about half a cable's length all round
the island, except on the south-west side, where the surf rolls
142
Couthouy on Coral Formations
in directly upon the beach. There is anchorage for ships in
from ten to thirty fathoms water on either side of the low,
sandy islet by which the entrances are separated.*
SKETCH OF CHRISTMAS ISLAND.
0 /
157 30.
The letters A. B. C. D. E.,and the adjoining dark spots, indicate the position
of the snialler lagoons and dry hollows.
F. and G. are two hills of coral sand, about ten feet higher than the rest of
the island.
*For the sketch of Christmas Island, and also many of the facts in connexion,
I am indebted to the Hawaiian Spectator, for July, 1838. This publication,
which was issued quarterly, in a very handsome octavo form, at Honolulu, in
Oahu, and conducted with much ability by an association of the foreign resi-
dents, v/as discontinued at the close of the second year, for lack of patronage.
This is much to be regretted, as it promised to be the vehicle of much important
information, both of a scientific and general character, relative to Polynesia.
Its place is in a measure supplied by a weekly paper entitled " The Polynesian,
established in June, 1840, and ably edited by our townsman and former asso-
ciate, J. J. Jarves, Esq., but the size of this renders it less valuable than the
Spectator, as a work of reference.
in the Pacific, S^c.
143
H. the low, sandy island between the entrances, which are marked by the
dotted line.
The four trees represent the situation of as many groves of cocoa-nut. The
dark dotted patches in the lagoon, which should be much more numerous, are
sand banks and coral shallows; and the black spots on the eastern shore, denote
large fragments of reef-rock thrown up by the breakers.
At Carlshoff Island, in about 15° 30' S. lat. and 145° 30' W.
long., near the north-west side of the lagoon, and a short
quarter of a mile from the sea beach, is a pool of tolerably
fresh water, between fifty and sixty yards round, and five
feet deep, which appears to have been formed like the dry
hollows at Christmas Island.
But in nothing perhaps throughout the coral seas, are the
proofs of re-elevation more conspicuous than in the large
tabular masses of reef-rock which have been spoken of as
lining the weather shores of many Paumotus. At Serle, Vin-
cennes, (a few miles West of Raraka,) King's, Carlshofi",
Honden, Tooa, Aitoho, and Dean's or Prince of Wales' islands,
these constitute one of the most prominent features. At the
last named, they are strewn along the coast for upwards of
thirty miles, and some of the masses, as nearly as I could
estimate, were a hundred feet long. It is not improbable that
the whole coast here may be a reef raised three or four feet.
The enormous size of the rocks in some instances, renders it
almost incredible that any surf could have been sufficiently
powerful, to tear from the reef and remove them to their pres-
ent situation.
Not having landed here, but only seen these ledges through a
glass while coasting the island at a mile's distance, I cannot
of course speak positively on this question, or as to their exact
size ; but as regards the latter, any person who has made the
experiment, will admit that in viewing objects on a beach in
this manner, their magnitude is more apt to be under than
over-estimated. In most cases, however, there is no doubt
but that these blocks are erratic, and originally constituted
144 Couthouy on Coral Formations
the impending shelf of the surface plateau, which from their
being torn off now presents at its edge only a steep slope.
That this shelf could not have been formed while the plateau
was at its present elevation, is apparent not merely from the
fact that the surf would prevent its construction, but because
as the appearance of the whole reef testifies, it is not covered
with a depth of water adapted to the operations of the poly-
pes on such a scale. The fragments must also have been re-
moved to the locality they now occupy, while the reef was
at a lower level, since the surf at present scarcely reaches
them except during heavy gales. That a considerable re-ele-
vation has taken place since they became fixed where we find
them, is evinced by the manner in which their sides and faces
have been hollowed out by the action of the waves. Had no
change of level occurred, we should naturally expect to see
the greatest excavation near their union with the subjacent
reef, where they are unceasingly exposed to the flux and re-
flux of the tide, whereas it is frequently near their upper
third, and a portion of it above high water mark, giving to
the smaller masses a great variety of configuration, as may
be seen in the following sketch of a cluster on the reef at
King's island.
"mf^ iiiiir„jir. ii...MJi
7Jii:riiir""jirL::;^'zrifX"i
The interrupted line in this and the preceding cut indicate
the line of high water in ordinary tides.
I incline to a belief that the fissures described as existing in
the thin shelves of coralline limestone surrounding some
islands, should be included among the evidences of re-eleva-
tion. The character of their stratification shows that these
were originally deposited on a horizontal plane, and their pres-
ent dip of 5*^ or 6"^ seaward, may have been occasioned by
the upward pressure of the submerged summit below the bed
of the lagoon, which would also be likely to cause in strata of
their extent and tenuity, such rents as I have mentioned.
This is certainly the case with similar formations on the east-
in the Pacific^ ^c. 145
em coast of Kauai, whose dip is 10° or 12° so that the edges
of the laminae at their landward termination, crop out a foot
or more above the beach.
Throughout the volcanic islands of Polynesia the tokens of
recent elevation are every where conspicuous in a greater or
less degree. At the Society and Samoan groups may be seen
above water at low tide, corals in situ, whose upper portion
and frequently the entire mass is blackened, and their polypes
destroyed by exposure.
At the north-west end of Manua, (the easternmost of the
Samoas,) fragments of coral, whose quantity and size are such
as to render it impossible that they were placed there by other
than natural agency, are to be seen at least eighty feet above
the sea, on a steep bill-side rising half a mile inland from
a low, sandy plain abounding in marine remains. These
fragments are imbedded in a mixture of decomposed lava,
mould and sand, and some of them are of such magnitude that
four stout natives could not turn them over. The immediate
coast is rocky and precipitous, the material, a partially decayed
lava having a stratified character, but the strata much dis-
torted and dislocated and in many places rent vertically asun-
der. At this end of the island there is no reef, properly so
called, the water shoaling gradually from thirty fathoms at a
quarter of a mile distance, till it breaks within a few yards of
the beach. There are, however, numerous scattered patches
and detached clusters of coral from a depth of ten fathoms to
where the sea breaks.
At Tahiti I was informed, that on the sandy isthmus con-
necting the mountainous peninsulas of Tobreonu and Tiarabu
into which that island is divided, eight or ten feet below the
surface was a solid bed of coral rock, about the same num-
ber of feet above the sea. That this was formerly a reef con-
necting two islands is the more probable from there being
here an interruption of the present shore reef, the deep water
continuing quite to the beach.
At the Hawaiian islands, which are still the seat of volcanic
action on a magnificent scale, the elevation has been much
greater and its proofs more appai'ent than perhaps in any other
19
146 Couthouy on Coral Formations
region of Polynesia. The islands of Maui, Molokai, Oahu, and
Kauai, abound in such evidences, of which I will specify here
only a few of the most striking.
At Oahu on the south side, the whole plain on which the
town of Honolulu is situated, is an elevated coral reef, ex-
tending between three and four miles from east to west, and
varying from half a mile to a mile in breadth. The land-
ward side of this reef is highest, being, as well as I can re-
member, about twenty feet above the sea. In certain parts,
like that for instance on which the town is built, the reef is
covered to a depth of from two to five feet with ashes and
fine scoriaceous sand, which were probably ejected from the
now long extinct craters of Puiwa, just behind the town, and
Leahi* about four miles east of it on the coast, chiefly, how-
ever, from the former, at whose foot the plain terminates, about
a mile from the sea. Below this volcanic sand is sometimes
found a stratum of slightly cemented coral sand, containing
shells and Echinides of species identical with those now liv-
ing in the vicinity. In other places, as on the plain at the
entrance of the Manoa valley, between Honolulu and Waikiki,
the reef is entirely bare, with every hollow and guUey as dis-
tinctly defined as they are on the present shore reef A short
half mile west of Honolulu and half that distance from the
sea, at the mouth of a branch of the Nuuanu valley, a con-
siderable stream flows through a section of this elevated reef
some twenty feet deep. A mile and a half farther west there
is a similar section at the mouth of the Kalihi valley. These
appear to have been anciently passages in the reef, and show
that it is composed of the same genera of corals (principally
Porites) as constitute the mass of the recent reef In the dis-
trict of Ewa, fourteen miles west of Honolulu, on the left
bank of Pearl river a few rods from its mouth, there is a bed
of oyster shells, twelve feet in thickness and more than a hun-
dred yards in length, whose lowest portion is full five feet
above the sea. They are for the most part entire and in a
fine state of preservation, the internal polish yet uneflaced and
* Puiwa is the " Punchbowl hill," and Leahi the " Diamond Head," of the
foreigners.
in the Pacific, 6fc. 147
not tacky or " happante''' to the tongue. They bear a very
close resemblance to our O. horealis, and it is remarkable that
although imbedded with it are found many shells which still
inhabit the adjacent coast in great numbers, the Ostrea is ap-
parently an extinct species. It was seen no where else in the
Pacific, neither so far as I could ascertain, is it met with either
fossil or recent on any other part of this coast.
From Waialua on the north-west side of Oahu I received
specimens of a very hard and compact breccia of shells and
coral, said to be taken from cliffs of the same material twenty
feet high, which the description sent with the specimens left
me little doubt, were the remains of an ancient cemented co-
ral beach.
On the coasts of Kauai there are frequent elevated beaches.
One of these at Kalihiwai, on the north side of the island,
three fourths of a mile inland, is composed of a slightly cohe-
rent conglomerate of coral and shells raised about fifteen feet.
Aged natives dwelling in the neighborhood, affirmed to me
that the sea had retired within their remembrance an eighth
of a mile, and that in their youth, old men had told them that
they in their boyhood fished in canoes at a spot now full one
third of a mile from the sea, which since that period, as they
forcibly expressed it, " ihanauia ka lepo hou,^^ literally, had
brought forth the new earth. Four or five miles west of this,
the river Hanalei, flowing through a plain of the same name
in the district of Waioli,* displays on its banks rather more
than a quarter of a mile from the sea, the section of an ancient
beach about five feet higher than the present one, and com-
posed of materials similar to that of Kahhiwai. This line of
beach extends from the base elevated table land, forming the
eastern boundary of the plain in a westerly direction three
miles across, to the foot of the lofty ridges of Marnalahoa and
Puiinauekia its limits on the opposite side ; following the cur-
" Waioli signifies " the singing" or " the jyy/ul water," and is applied to this
region by the liawaiians, whose names are always not lesi poetical than de-
■criptive, on account of the numerous glittering cascades that come singing and
leaping down from the lofty mountains by which it is girt on all sides but the
seaward one.
148
Couthouy on Coral Formations
vature of the hills to the south, and sometimes almost skirting
them at from the fourth of a mile to a mile from the shore.
The figure below represents a north and south section of the
plain, from just back of the ancient beach to the sea, on a
scale of 2.5 inches to a mile, and 10 feet to the inch.
a. Surface soil, twelve to fourteen inches deep below the old beach, and
eighteen to twentysix inches deep above it.
h. A decomposed lava ten or twelve feet thick, gradually passing into the
solid rock.
c. A mixture of decomposed lava, surface mould, and coral and shell detritua.
d. Ancient beach of coral rubble, shells, and volcanic earth and sand.
c. A stratum of like materials with c. ten inches thick at its commencement,
but gradually attenuating as it approaches the sea till at one-fourth of a mile
from it, it is lost.
/. A stratum of fine volcanic sand, chiefly comminuted crystals of olivine,
and fine coral detritus and shells.
g. Thin laminae, the planes of whose stratification are parallel, formed by a
concretion of the materials of /. and having thin layers of locjse sand interposed.
h. Present beach — coral rubble, shells and sand, chiefly coral detritus.
These laminae were evidently formed by successive hori-
zontal depositions, but have since been tilted up so as to dip
about 5*^ north to the sea. Proceeding inland, after passing
the line of old beach, the surface soil is twice the thickness
of that on the seaward portion of the plain, and rests on the
stratum of decomposed lava. The layer of mixed earth, sand
and shells, was no doubt washed from the stratum at the time
when the sea was at the old beach. The bed of sand and
detritus on which this mixed layer, and after its disappearance,
the surface mould rests, is full of slight inequalities, as if rip-
pled up by the wind or sea. Probably the former was the
real agent after its elevation. In the opinion of several intel-
ligent residents, this plain has been formed merely by long
continued additions to the beach, but there are several facts
contradictory of this.
in the Pacific^ S^c, 149
From all the evidence I could collect, either by personal
observation or inquiry, it is my belief that the sea instead of
augmenting the coast, is yearly encroaching upon it and re-
gaining its previous loss by elevation. The surf which rolls
in from the broad open bay of Hanalei, especially during the
winter months, with tremendous violence, must operate de-
structively upon a beach shelving into deep water so abruptly
as this.
There is a short beach a mile and a half perhaps from that
of Hanalei, between the river Lumahae and the ridge of
Puiinauekia, which during the winter is sometimes three hun-
dred yards wide, and is every summer narrowed to twenty or
twentyfive yards, yet no corresponding increase takes place
during the latter season in the main beach. Yet it is evident-
ly the waste of this which contributes to widen the other, it
being the only one in the vicinity capable of furnishing the
material. If the plain was of gradual formation by succes-
sive increment, as a natural consequence the surface soil
would be deepest on the inland or older portion, whereas
it is of the same thickness one hundred yards from the sea as
at the ancient line of coast. Moreover, a transverse section
of both the ancient and modern beaches, exhibits a ridge
composed of coral in considerable fragments, entire shells,
Echinides, &c. mixed with a rather coarse coralline sand, and
if the intervening space were merely a succession of similar
beaches there is no reason why it should not be similarly con-
stituted. But instead of this it contains only a few scattered
corals in small pieces, the shells in it are small and broken up
and the sand is very fine, much of it being of volcanic ori-
gin ; the whole appearing like the finer and heavier particles,
now being washed from the beach and carried seaward by the
recoil and undertow of the surf. Adding to these facts that
of the dip northward, of the lower bed of laminar concre-
tions, I think the plain of Hanalei should be classed among
the instances of elevation by subterranean forces. The man-
ner in which the strata of cemented coralline sand are tilted
up in the vicinity of Wailua has already been described. At
Anahola a few miles north of this, half a mile from the sea is
150 Couthouy on Coral Formations
a remarkable beach, more than a mile in length, consisting of
a mixture of loose corals, shells and sand, deposited in very
regular curved strata. From this and all the other old beach-
es a sandy plain, with a thin coating of soil extends to the
present coast.
That section of the coast at Kauai, designated by the na-
tives as Na Pali, or " the Precipices," which from Hamakoa
on the north, to Lapa on the west, extends about twelve
miles in an unbroken, inaccessible wall of sub-columnar lava,
from eighteen hundred to twenty five hundred feet high, exhib-
its continuous traces of exposure to the action of the waves,
several feet above the line of cavities now being worn by the
surf.
At Molokai, an island a few miles north-west of Maui, Mr.
B. Munn, teacher for the Mission, assured me that he had
seen masses of coral apparently in their original position,
imbedded in calcareous rocks, one hundred and even one
hundred and fifty feet above sea level. I suspect, however,
that here is some error, either of calculation or observation,
having seen nothing on any of the other islands to warrant
the belief in such an elevation as this would indicate. Still
from the testimony of all the missionaries, there can be no
question of the fact that there are really in Molokai raised
coral beaches of height at least equal to those of Oahu and
Kauai.
By the statements of several persons who have long been
residents on Oahu, the elevation there is at present going for-
ward at a very perceptible rate. Henry A. Peirce, Esq., an
American merchant who has dwelt at Honolulu for upwards
of sixteen years, and whose high intelligence and habits of
close observation entitle his opinion on this point to much re-
spect, has informed me that large portions of the reef on both
sides of the harbor, which at his first arrival were never un-
covered by the sea, have since then risen so much as to be
now bare every tide at low water ; other parts which were
within his knowledge exposed only at that stage, are now na-
ked an hour before it, and the sea has in the same time rece-
in the Pacific, ^c. 151
ded as much as thirty feet from places where canoes were
accustomed to land.*
It is to be remembered that throughout this group of islands,
earthquakes are of very frequent occurrence, especially at
Hawaii, the principal one, and seat of the great volcano of
Kilauea, where several occur almost every year. At Hilo, or
Byron's Bay, about thirty miles north-east of the crater, dur-
ing the month of November, 1838, upwards of fifty shocks
were experienced within eight days, and not less than twelve
more counted in a single night. There is another active vol-
cano in the Vichis, or Fejees, and several more in the islands
to the southward and westward of them, nor is it at all im-
probable that throughout the entire extent of Polynesia, the
internal fires are raging below the ocean's bed, and by their
upward forces constantly tending to elevate the existing
islands.f
* Among the evidences of the slow increase of corals, alluded to on page 67,
were included through inadvertence, experiments made at long intervals on the
dftpth of channels and upon well known reefs. These should be set aside, since
it is clear that such depth might be increased or diminished by a subsidence or
elevation of the reef, and therefore no correct inference as to the growth of the
corals composing it can be drawn from such experiments.
t Its bearings on this question, the singularity of the phenomena it records,
and the limited circulation of the work in which it appears, will, I trust, be
deemed sufficient apologies for introducing here the account of an extraordinary
oscillation of the sea, published in the Hawaiian Spectator, for January 1838,
by T. C. B. Rooke, F. R. C. S., a resident of Honolulu.
" On the evening and night of the 7th Nov. 1837, a most remarkable commo-
tion of the sea was witnessed at Honolulu, in many respects similar to that
witnessed at these islands in May, 1819. One inch and a half of rain had
fallen during the previous tvventyfoiir hours; the wind was fresh from the.
north-east, squally at intervals. The atmosphere was clear and cool, — Therm.
74.5. The Barometer had gradually fallen during the four previous days, but
this evening had again risen to 30.00, at 6 o'clock, when the alarm was given
that the sea was retiring. The first recession wad the greatest, — somethmg
more than eight feet; but being unprepared to make observations at tlie mo-
ment, the exact fall was not measured. The reefs surrounding the harbor were
lefi dry, and the fish aground were mostly dead. The s« a quickly returned,
and in twentyeight minutes reached the height of an ordinary high tide ; scarce-
ly remaining stationary, it again receded and fell six feel. This was repeated
at intervals of twentyeight minutes. On the third rising it wag four inches
above ordinary high water mark, and fell again six leet four inches. After the
fourth rising, the length of time occupied by the rise and fall varied, and the
153 Couthouy on Coral Formations
Before closing these imperfect reminiscences, a few remarks
may be added, respecting Matea, or Aurora Island, a coral reef
rise and fall diminished gradually, but not regularly. At 11, P. M. the Ther-
mometer stood at 74, Barometer 30.04 ; wind freshening and frequent showers;
the ebb now occupied twenty minutes, and the flow ten. At 11.30 it became
calm with constant rain. Thermometer 73.5 ; Barometer 30.03. The ebb and
flow still continued, occupying the same space of time, but the rise and fall
decreasing. This continued during the forenoon of the 8th. The rapidity with
which the water fell, varied in different parts of the harbor. On the east side,
the greatest rapidity noticed was six inches in a minute; but on the north, at
one time during the third recession it fell twelve inches in thirty seconds. At
no time did the water rise higher than a common spring tide; but the fall was
about six feet below low water mark. The same occurrence is related ta have
taken place in 1819, when the tide rose and fell thirteen times in the space of
a few hours. On neither occasion was there any perceptible motion or trem-
bling of the earth, or unusual appearance of the atmosphere.
On the leeward side of Maui the same rise and fall took place as at Honolulu,
but on the windward part of the island the sea retired about twenty fathoms and
quickly returned in one gigantic wave sweeping every thing before it, bouses,
trees, canoes, and every moveable object exposed to its fury. At a small vil-
lage, called Kahului, in the district of Wailuku, on the sea retiring, the amazed
inhabitants followed it as it receded, eagerly catching the stranded fish, shouting
and hallooing with pleasure, when suddenly the sea rose perpendicularly before
them like a precipice, and rushing to the beach, buried the assembled multitudes
in the flood, and overflowing the shore, swept away every house in the village
but one; the canoes and property of the natives were all destroyed. Happily,
owing to the amphibious education of the people, but two lives were lost here,
but as the same occurrence happened all along the seaside we shall probably
hear of more deaths.
At Byron's Bay, on Hawaii, the same phenomenon took place. An unusual
number of persons were collected together attending a protracted meeting, con-
sequently every house was crowded. At half-past 6 the sea retired at the rate
of four or five knots an hour, reducing the soundings from five to three and a
half fathoms at the anclwrage, and leaving a great extent of the harbor dry.
Hundreds of curious souls rushed down to witness the novelty, whea a gigantic
wave came ro'iring to the shore at the rate of six or eight knots an hour, rising
twenty feet above high water maik, and fell on the beach with a noise resem-
bling a heavy peal of thunder, burying the people in the flood, destroying
houses, canoes, and fish-jionds, washing away the food and clothing of the in-
habitants, large quantities of animals, fire wood, and timber collected on the
strand for sale. The cries of distress were horrible; those in the water unable
to swim among the wreck of houses, and pieces of timber, struggling for their
lives, and those on shore wailing for their friends and relatives. The British
whale ship Admiral Cockburn was at anchor in the Bay, and to the timely aid
and humane exertions of her master, (Lawrence,) and crew, many are indebted
for their lives; but for the assistance rendered by their boats many who were
stunned and insensible would have been carried out to sea, and perished, as the
natives had not a single canoe left that would float. Every thing was destroyed ;
in the Pacific, S^c. 153
which has been elevated about two hundred feet, lying some
thirty leagues from Tahiti, in a N. N. E. direction. This
island presents a perpendicular wall on all sides but the north-
east, where it slopes rather steeply to the water. The greater
portion of this wall has no attached reef, and rises abruptly
from the ocean, which at one hundred yards distance is per-
fectly blue ; but there are occasionally crescent-shaped tracts
of low land between the sea and base of the cliff, which pre-
vious to the elevation of the island may have formed small
bays, and from these extends a narrow coral plateau. At the
inland termination of these plains, is a large talus composed
of massy fragments fallen from the cliff, in all probability
ruins of the anciently projecting shelf. Their whole surface
is worn by the water into deep inequalities, so sharp and rug-
those who escaped with their lives had neither food nor raiment left. In Ka-
nokapa and Kaahelu alone, sixtysix houses were destroyed, and eleven persons
lost their lives; four men, two women, and five children; at Waiolama and
Hauna, a woman and child were drowned ; at Kauwal-; one woman lost her
life. The amount of damage done has not yet been ascertained, nor is it known
how many times the sea rose and fell. There was no shock of an earthquake
felt at Hilo, or elsewhere, although it is ascertained that the volcano of Kilauea
was unusually disturbed the previous evening, the fires were suddenly quenched,
and yawning chasms burst open in previously tranquil places, accompanied with
violent explosions= Inquiries have been made of masters of vessels who were
to the north and to the east of the islands on the 7th, at various distances, but
none of them noticed any thing unusual in the sea, or atmosphere. That this
apparent submarine volcanic action has taken place at some distance from the
islands is proved by the wave striking the different islands simultaneously and
apparently in the same direction ; but at what distance we have no means at
present of determining. Perhaps the internal fires have found a new vent,
which may be laying the foundation of a new group of islands in our neighbor-
hood. It is now nineteen and a half years since a similar phenomenon oc-
curred here, but not so violently as the last, nor was it attended with any loss
of life."
Cases of the sea during earthquakes retiring for a short time to retirn with
overwhelming force, are but too familiar matter of history. Such are the wave
which utterly destroyed old Callao in 1746; that witnessed during the great
earthquake of Lisbon, and more recently, in those which have been attended
with such fearful consequences along the coast of Chili ; but I am not aware
that there is on record any parallel to such a series of alternating ebb and flow
of the sea, unaccompanied by any perceptible commotion of the earth, as is
here described by Dr. Rooke. That it was nevertheless occasioned by the
throes of pent up subterranean fires at some remote point, there can I think be
little question.
20
154 Couthouy on Coral Formations
ged as to render walking, or to speak correctly, clambering
over them a difficult and fatiguing task. At the foot of the
cliff, back of the lowland, are frequent caverns, from whose
roofs depend numerous stalactites from the size of a pipe-stem
to that of a man's body, the little drops of water at their ex-
tremity sparkling like so many diamonds wherever the light
from a crevice falls upon them. The floors are also covered
with stalagmitic incrustations in every degree of hardness,
and assuming a great variety of forms. Those into which I
entered, descended for a few feet at an angle of about 30°,
like an arched vault, and then expanded into an irregular cir-
cular grotto, with a level floor, whose ceiling was from four to
fifteen feet in height. Some of these caves are capable of
holding at least three hundred persons.
From one of the plains on the north side, where there is a
village with some two hundred and fifty inhabitants, a steep
ascent leads to the summit, which presents a broad table land,
declining a few feet toward the centre, where we may sup-
pose the lagoon to have been situated. Near the eastern ex-
tremity, a few yards from the bank, are two knolls gently
rising to a height of perhaps forty feet, which I presume to be
remains of the ancient fragmentary ridge, formed when this
table land was the surface reef, the main portion having been
undermined and worn away by the action of the surf on the
south-east or windward side during tlie period of elevation.
To this cause, I imagine, is also to be assigned the sloping
form of the island in that direction, while the sheltered lee-
ward side has preserved its original sheer descent. The
dense growth of forest, and tangled luxuriance of under
growth, prevented any minute observation during my hurried
visit, but I recollect that the whole surface of the table land,
and the ascent of the q\\S. for eighty or a hundred feet below
it, was covered with fragments of coral conglomerate, the
species imbedded in which were the same with those found
on the reef below. Indeed, the entire mass of the island is a
reef-rock in various stages of consolidation, the lower portion
approximating to a solid limestone, the cellular coralline struc-
ture being in some fragments hardly perceptible, and the
in the Pacific, (J*c. 155
imbedded shells frequently losing their texture, becoming
blent with the rock, and presenting merely casts.*
The island appears to have been elevated at two successive
periods, between which it remained stationary for a consider-
able time ; as rather more than half way up the cliff is a hori-
zontal belt of deep excavations, exactly resembling those now
worn at its base by the sea. This belt is not absolutely con-
tinuous, being interrupted at intervals by spaces where the ac-
tion of the water is not discernible. Such, however, should a
third elevation occur, would be the condition of the present
base of the cliff, at which the line of excavation is apparent
only in those portions exposed to the action of the surf.
Viewed from a distance, the belt appears distinctly to divide
the cliff into two nearly equal portions, and in several places
where this latter forms an angle, large perforations are visible,
which must have resulted from the wearing away of the rock
by the surf.
Thus have I, hastily and at random, as promised in the
outset, thrown together some of my reminiscences of these
interesting regions. At a future day I may be enabled (aban-
doning the indefinite specifications whose occurrence I am
well aware is too frequent in these remarks, but which under
the circumstances are unavoidable,) systematically to arrange
my observations, and give the details with the minuteness
and precision demanded by the importance of the subject.
Since the remarks upon the influence of tides upon reef
channels, in a preceding portion of this communication, have
been in press, it has occurred to me that in connection with
that topic it will be proper to specify several erroneous asser-
tions relative to the tides generally throughout Polynesia ;
which derive importance from the name of their authors just-
ly possessing much weight, not less with scientific readers
than the public generally.
* Specimens of shells in this state are also found occasionally in the tabular
masses of reef-rock, on the shores of some lagoon islands. These frag-
ments, like the rock at Matea, indicate by their structure that the main body of
the reefs is not a homogeneous coral rock, but a conglomerate of large pieces
of coral and shells, filled in and cemented together by a detritus of similar ma-
terials.
156 Couthouy on Coral Formations
Capt. Beechey, in the '' Yoyage of the Blossom," part L
Chap. IX. Lond. Ed., speaking of tides in the harbors of Ta-
hiti, remarks, '' At Toanoa, it is usually low water about six
every morning, and high water half an hour after noon," and
attributes this peculiarity to the sea breeze by day, forcing
the water into the harbor, which is a lagoon between the reef
and shore; adding, "as the wind abates, the water subsides,
and the nights being generally calm, the water finds its low-
est level by morning."
Now the first of these propositions, though strictly true,
is only a partial statement, conveying, and (as is evident
from the context) designed to convey, the idea that the flood
tide lasts only about six hours, while the ebb continues for
eighteen, from noon of one day till six the next morning.
The second quotation contains a positive mis-statement. In
the first place, at Toanoa, as in all the harbors of Tahiti and
the other Society Islands, it is full sea regnlarly twice in
twentyfour hours, and always about noon and midnight ; and
low water about six o'clock, morning and evening. The morn-
ings are calm for perhaps eleven months in the year, the trade
wind or sea breeze commonly setting in about eleven o'clock,
and prevailing in its greatest strength from noon till four or
five P. M. It then dies away, and by eight or nine P. M.
there is a dead calm which continues till the next forenoon.
Thus instead of the tide being forced into the harbor by
the sea breeze, we find that a great jiart of the day and all
the night flood takes place during a calm, whereas during
the afternoon, the water ebbs rapidly against the full power
of the breeze. Even if Capt. B. were correct, in regard to
the duration of the ebb and flood, his explanation would not
reach the case of those harbors on the leeward side of the
islands, where the trades are not felt, and yet the tides follow
the same course as those on the opposite side.
In Kotzebue's account of his voyage round the world, he
also has given currency to very inaccurate statements on this
subject. In his remarks on Tahiti, we find the following
passage. '^ Every noon, the whole year round, the moment
the sun touches the meridian, the water is highest, and falls
with the sinking sun, till midnight."
in the Pacific, 9fc. 157
It would be a difficult matter, to crowd in as few words a
greater number of errors than are here contained. They con-
vey a false impression that the tides are governed entirely by
the sun ; represent them as diurnal instead of semi-diurnal,
and name as the hour for the daily recurrence of low water,
that when it is actually full sea. Neither is it always high
water, as he asserts, '^ the moment the sun touches the
meridian," though this, compared with the rest, is but a,
trivial misrepresentation.
Capt. Beechy also remarks in the work cited, that '' the
tides in all harbors formed by coral reefs, are very uncertain,
and are almost wholly dependent on the sea breezes." So
far however is this from being the case, that throughout the
Harvey, Samoan, and Tonga Groups,* for days together at
certain seasons, there is no sea breeze whatever ; the tides
obey the moon with a regularity as undeviating as in any
other part of the world, although the majority of the numer-
ous harbors in the two latter are formed by coral reefs. As
great regularity prevails also in the recurrence of the abnor-
mal tides of the Society Islands, except when interrupted by
occasional heavy gales, and these for the most part blow either
across or opposite to the direction of the trade winds.
In a paper professing to be an " Extract from Lieut. Mai-
den's Official Account of the Sandwich Islands," published
in the Appendix of Lord Byron's voyage in H. M. Ship
Blonde, p. 256, Lond. Ed., 1826, are these remarks in refer-
ence to the tides at Hawaii, " The tide was observed to rise
about four feet, and to be high water at sunset, and low water
at dayhght, being influenced by the sea and land breezes.
This regularity would probably not take place in the winter
months, when they do not prevail."
This is also incorrect in every particular, save the height of
the tides. They do not statedly occur at the times here
given, neither are they affected to any extent by the preva-
lence or absence of the breezes, and I am at a loss to imagine
upon wiiat grounds Lieut. M. predicated such a statement as
* I include the Tonga or Frit-ndly Islands on the authority of Uct. Mr. Wil-
liams, who had spent some time among iheni.
158 Couthouy on Coral Formations
the above. Had he lacked opportunity during his stay at
Honolulu of observing for himself, there were certainly for-
eign residents enough there, missionaries and others, who
could have furnished him with more correct information on
this subject, had he sought to obtain it. The truth is, that
unless retarded or accelerated by occasional storms, the flood
and ebb at these islands, from one year's end to another, sum-
mer and winter, in breeze and calm, follow the course of the
moon as regularly as do the tides in Boston Harbor. The rise
and fall of the tide, varies in different harbors, from four to
five and a half feet. Having resided for six months in the
Hawaiian Group, traversed the four principal islands in vari-
ous directions, and beside making careful inquiry of the resi-
dents, examined no less than twelve harbors, including nearly
all of any consequence, some of them open roadsteads, others
formed by small bays, and a large proportion by coral reefs ; I
can speak with some confidence on this point.
All my visits to islands in coral archipelagos having been
very brief, I am unable to state what is the course of the tides
among them, but incline to believe that at the detached Pau-
motus, they obey the usual laws. On landing a second time
at Bellinghausen's Island, which is about two hundred and
seventy miles west of Tahiti, I found the reef quite bare, at
the same hour that it was overflowed on my first visit, some
months previous. At the full and change of the moon, the
rise at Ocean Island is about twentytwo inches, while at
Christmas Island it is five feet, but the tides on both are nor-
mal, by the accounts of those who have been wrecked and
resided on them for several months.
I hasten to terminate these discursive remarks, (already ex-
tended far beyond what was contemplated at the commence-
ment,) by oflering a few suggestions relative to a subject
which it appears to me has by no means received, hitherto,
an attention commensurate with its importance. I allude to
the temperature of the ocean, in its influence upon the growth
and geographical distribution of corals.
It is a remarkable fact, and one for which I am not aware
that any explanation has been ofi'ered, that while in the Paci-
in the Pacific^ ^c. 159
fic and Indian Oceans, coral abounds every where between
the tropics for a space of about six thousand leagues from
east to west, it does not exist on the west coast of South
America (at least south of the eighth parallel of latitude,) nor
do we meet with any coral islands within the whole space of
nearly eight hundred leagues to the westward of it.
Even at the Galapagos, situated directly upon the Equator,
there are no traces of a coral reef. This absence of coral
formations in portions of the same parallel in which their
most profuse display is presented, has by some been referred
to one of those inexplicable, apparent caprices of nature, be-
yond man's ability to fathom, analogous to the well-known
fact, that certain classes of plants which flourish luxuriantly
in the other hemisphere, will not thrive at all in situations and
climates seemingly in every respect adapted to their growth,
in our own. It is my impression, that in the Atlantic the
same absence of coral characterizes a large portion of the South
American coast, and the outlying intertropical islands, such
as Trinidad, Martin Vas, and Fernando Noronha ; while it
abounds in the same parallels north of the line, among the
Antilles, and even in the latitude of 32° we find a very con-
siderable group of coral reefs, and islands of coral limestone.
At the Cape Yerde Islands, and I think the Canaries jilso,
we have again an entire absence of such formations, although
the former are 17 degrees nearer the Equator than Bermuda.
On the east coast of South America, this may perhaps be
attributed partly to the immense bodies of fresh water poured
into the Atlantic from those great streams, which rolling in
turbid floods through a course thousands of miles in length,
empty themselves at various points from near the Equator to
the latitude of 35°. It is well known to what £m astonishing
distance their waters are carried along the coast, unmingled
with those of the ocean, and loaded with a fine, impalpable
mud. This must unquestionably be highly deleterious to
the coral polypes, if not suflicient to utterly prevent their
growth, as they require the purest ocean water for their suc-
cessful developement.
But I am persuaded, after a careful examination of the facts,
160 Couthouy on Coral Formations
that the absence of coral on the other side of the continent^
and in the wide space between it and the low islands of
Polynesia, is to be attributed to the prevalence of cold cur-
rents, which proceeding northward from the Polar regions are
perceptible the whole distance from Cape Horn to Callao, and
I presume much further to the north, in a temperature of the
ocean too low for the existence of the coral animals, and that
in a similar low temperature we are to seek for the cause of
their absence at the Cape Verde Islands. I have already al-
luded to the^greater heat on the souihern part of our coast and
the Bahamas, produced by the vicinity of the Gulf Stream.
A like temperature prevails along the southern shore of Cu-
ba, and the islands in its vicinity, and though unable to speak
positively, from^having no data, as to the Bermudas, I have no
doubt from their proximity to the Gulf Stream, that they are
washed by an equally warm sea. Now let us glance for a
moment at the facts bearing on this question, in regions situ-
ated in corresponding parallels of latitude, where no coral
formations exist. At Valparaiso, in lat. of 33° south, and
thence as far as the 20th parallel, in the month of November,
the surface temperature of the ocean near the coast has been
found to range from 58° to 60° ; at Callao, in the lat. of 12°,
from 58° to 62°, and thence in a north-westerly direction to
the GalapagoSj'to increase gradually to 68° and 70°. Among
these islands, at the same season, its average was not above
68°, and at some of them it did not exceed 62°. But leaving
these islands and proceeding south-west, we find it steadily
rising, till on the skirts of the Dangerous Archipelago it is up
to 78° and 79°, nearly 20° higher than on the coast in the
same parallel. And here we enter upon the coral formations.
Among the Paumotus, the field of their most lavish display,
the temperature varies from 77° to 83° ; at Tahiti from 77° to
80°, and about the same at the large groups to the west of it.
At the Hawaiian Islands, lying between 19° and 22° north
latitude, it is as high sometimes as 81°.
In our own hemisphere, among the Antilles, Bahamas, and
along the southern coast of Florida, I have found the tem-
perature of the water near the shore, at different seasons, from
78° to 82°, and in all these regions coral reefs abound.
in the Pacific, S^c. 161
At the Cape Verde Islands, and in the neighborhood of
Trinidad, Martin Yas, and Fernando Noronha, it falls to 69°
and 71° ; and these islands, as was before remarked, are en-
tirely destitute of coral formations. It is not unlikely that
there are cold currents from the Antarctic along the East £is
well as the West coast of South America, which combine
with the fresh water of its large rivers in preventing such
formations upon a certain portion of it, but this I have at
present no means of determining, being without any data as
to the temperature north of 35° on that side. It appears to
me, that such coincidences as the facts here submitted prove
to exist, between certain temperatures of the ocean and the
absence or presence of coral reefs, can scarcely be considered
by any reflecting mind, as merely casual ; and that there are
strong grounds for believing that we have here a clue to the
real cause of the singular absence of recent coral formations
in certain regions corresponding in every thing save tempera-
ture to those where they are most profusely scattered. In or-
der to enable us, however, satisfactorily to determine how far
their geographical distribution is affected by such causes, it is
essential that we should be furnished with a connected series
of observations on the oceanic temperatures at the surface and
to certain depths, along both sides of the African continent,
the coasts of Australia, and among the coral archipelagos of
the Indian seas ; together with that of the seas beyond the
limits of such formations, in both hemispheres. Such obser-
vations might easily be made on board our national vessels,
by direction of the Navy Department, and published in the
form of tabular reports at the expiration of their cruise. The
Department would, I presume, scarcely refuse to issue the
requisite instructions, upon suitable representation. There
are also many intelligent commanders in our merchant service,
who only require that their attention should be directed to
this matter, in order, as I am confident, to ensure their cordial
cooperation. By the mass of information which would thus
be brought together we might also expect that much light
would be thrown on questions relative to oceanic and (as con-
nected with these,) atmospheric phenomena, our knowledge
21
162 Couthouy on Coral Formations.
of which is yet in its infancy. Other advantages to the cause
of science, which we cannot now anticipate, would doubtless
result from such a course, as it frequently occurs that in the
collection of facts bearing on a particular subject, something
is elicited leading to important conclusions in regard to others
having at first sight no connection with it.
While convinced in my own mind of the truth of the sug-
gestions here offered, in regard to the absence of coral forma-
tions in certain regions, I feel conscious also that the data
upon which they rest, though certainly presenting a strong
case as far as they extend, are after all but limited in compar-
ison with those still deficient. I submit them for what they
are worth. What this may be, time and more extensive ob-
servation must determine. Claiming only to have at least
sought a more rational method of accounting for the peculiar-
ities here pointed out, than that of supposing them altogether
fortuitous, I shall rejoice if the end show that I have contri-
buted in the slightest degree, or in a single point of view, to
the advancement of the great object to which we are all,
according to our opportunities, devoted.
In the operations of Nature, or rather of Deity, there is
nothing the result of blind chance, and though there may be
particular phenomena, which in our present ignorance of the
laws controlling them, we are unable to explain ; it is not the
less certain that these laws really exist, and that patient re-
search will yet be rewarded by their discovery. The day
will come, and we may hope is even now dawning upon us,
when error and misconception shall vanish before the advance
of science, as the morning mist from the strength of the noon-
tide sun ; when with the clouds dispersed which yet partially
obscure even the brightest intellect, the veil shall be Ufted
from Nature's most secret mysteries, and those things which
we now behold but as " through a glass, darkly," be all re-
vealed in the clear eff'ulgence of immutable Truth.
EuBATA. Page 78, line next to the liottom, for " Silurian," read Cambrian.
Page 79, 10th line from top, fur '' regions," read rigors.
Page 147, 9th line Irom bottom, for" base elevated table land," read base of the
elevated table land.
BOSTON
JOURNAL OF NATURAL HISTORY.
VoL.IV. SEPTEMBER, 1842. No. 2.
Art. XIIL— descriptions OF SOME OF THE SPECIES OF
NAKED, AIR-BREATHING MOLLUSCA, INHABITING THE
UNITED STATES. By Aaios Binney. (Read Dec. 1841.)
Very little attention has hitherto been given in the United
States, to the animals belonging to the family of Limacidae,
or Slugs, The only paper on the subject which I have met
with, is one pubhshed at Philadelphia by the late M. Rafi-
nesque, in the Annals of Nature for 1820, a periodical work
projected by him, but which never extended beyond the
specimen number. In this paper M. Rafinesque, with his
usual dexterity in proposing new genera and species, gives the
characters of two genera and six species, from animals noticed
by him in various parts of the country, but not since recog-
nised by other naturalists. One of his genera, however,
which, under the name of Philomycus, he intended should
embrace those species which are entirely destitute of a man-
tle, and which cannot be included in the genus Limax, as
hitherto defined, and may with propriety and convenience be
retained, has been adopted by M. Ferussac. It will be
necessary, for the same reason, to establish another genus for
the reception of those species in which the mantle covers the
whole superior surface of the body, but which are excluded
from all the accepted genera. I propose to designate this
164 Binney on the Naked Air-Breathing Mollusca
genus by the name of Tebennophorus, signifying wearing a
cloak.
Its characters would be as follows :
Genus Tebennophorus.
Mantle covering the whole superior surface of the body ;
pulmonary cavity anterior^ orifice on the i^ight side towards
the head ; orifice of the rectum contiguous to, and a little
above and in advance of the pulmonary orifice ; organs of
generation united, orifice behind and below the superior tenta-
cle of the right side : without testaceous rudiment, terminal
971UCUS pore, or locomotive band of the foot.
Dr. Dekay, in his Catalogue of Animals of New York, has
indicated by name, two new species of Limax, the L. linea-
tus and L. marmoratus. As no description or figure of these
has yet appeared, it is impossible to determine whether they
are identical with any of the species described in this paper,
or not.
Genus Limax, Auctorum.
LlMAX FLAVUS.
L. corpore lutescente, maculis albidis insignito; dorso glandulis elevatis
angustis instructo ; clypeo ovali, lineis concentricis et maculis orbiculalis ornato ;
tentaculis cseruleis ; carina brevi.
SYNONTMES AND REFERENCES.
Limax flavus, ltnn^us. Fauna Suecica, 2d edit. No. 2092.
Systema NaturcE, I2th edit. p. 1081, No. 7.
PENNANT. British Zoology, IV. 41, No. 20.
GRAY. British Land and F. Water Shells, 1 14.
Limax variegatus, draparnaud. Hist, des Moll. 127, No. 9.
DE RoissY. Buffon de Sonn. Moll. V. 182.
FERUSSAC. Hist, des Moll. 11, pi. 5,/. 1 to 6.
Tab. Syst. 21, No. 3.
Supplement, 96, 2, No. 3.
LAMARCK. Anim. sans Vert. 2d edit. VII. 722.
DESCRIPTION.
Color brownish, yellowish brown, or ashy brown with ob-
inhabiting the United States. 165
long-oval uucolored spots which have a longitudinal disposi-
tion ; mantle with rounded spots ; head, neck, and superior
tentacles blue, semitransparent ; lower tentacles white ; base
of foot sallow white. Body when extended cylindrical,
elongated, terminating acutely with a short but prominent
keel : upper part covered with long and narrow prominent
tubercles. Mantle ample, oval, rounded at both ends, with
numerous very fine concentrical striae. Sides paler, and
without spots. Respiratory foramen large, placed near the
posterior lateral margin of the mantle and cleft to the edge.
Generative orifice indicated by a white spot a little behind
the upper tentacle of the right side.
Length, when fully extended, nearly three inches.
Geographical Distribution. Noticed hitherto only in
the city of Philadelphia.
Remarks. The contrast of colors, and the elegant arrange-
ment of the spots and lines, render this a beautiful species.
The tubercles of the surface are very fine, and so much com-
pressed as to appear in some lights to be carinated. There
is often a well defined row of spots down the back. The
upper tentacles are long and delicate, the mantle sometimes
terminates posteriorly in an obtuse point, and the locomotive
band of the foot is narrow and well defined. There is a
prominent ridge on the head and neck between the tentacles,
and a furrow marks the edges of the foot. It is active in its
motions, turns rapidly, and often bends the body so as to form
two parallel lines. It does not secrete mucus so freely as
Limax agrestis. The carina is often yellowish. The testa-
ceous rudiment is oblong-oval, convex above and concave be-
low, thin and membranaceous, with the superior surface
smooth, and the lower uneven. No spiral arrangement is
visible to the eye, and it appears to be only a thin testaceous
plate imbedded in the mantle.
It inhabits cellars and gardens in moist situations in the
city of Philadelphia, where it is considered noxious to vege-
tation. It feeds upon the leaves of plants in kitchen gardens,
and upon the remains of the cooked vegetables, and bread,
thrown out from houses. It is common, but not so numerous
166 Binney on the Naked Air- Breathing Mollusca
as Limax agrestis. I have never seen it suspend itself by a
mucous thread.
This species is of foreign origin, but the period of its intro-
duction is not known. It may probably exist in other cities
as well as in Philadelphia, or even in the country not far dis-
tant from the sea-coast. It was noticed by Mr. Say, more
than twenty years since.
LIMAX AGRESTIS.
L. corpore albo, griseo, cinereo, rufescenle aut nigrescente, unicolore aut
maculato, sub-c^lindraceo, glandulis elongatis et sulcis fuscis reticulatis in-
structo ; cljpeo anteriore, ovali, gibboso, lineis concentricis striate; carina
brevi ; aperturd laterali postica.
SYNONYMES AND REFERENCES.
Limax agrestis, linnjEUS. Syst. Nat. I2th edit. p. 1082.
MULLER. 2d part. No. 204, p. 8.
DRAPARNAUD. Hist. des. Moll.p. 126, ^Z. 9,^0^.9.
FERUSSAC. Tableau Syst. p. 2\.
Hist, des Moll p. 73, pi. 6, Jig. 7—10.
Supplement, p. 96.
LAMARCK. Anim. sans Vert. 2d. edit. l.p. 717.
Limax tunicata, gould. Invertehrata of Mass. p. 3.
DESCRIPTION.
Color varying from whitish through every shade of cin-
ereous and gray to black, and through various shades of yel-
lowish, or amber-color, to brownish, and sometimes irregularly
spotted with small black points or dots ; tentacles darker than
the general surface, sometimes black ; mantle sometimes
mottled with a lighter color ; base of foot sallow white ;
sheath of tentacles indicated by black lines extending back-
wards from their base under the edge of the mantle. Body
when in motion cylindrical, elongated, terminating acutely,
the sides towards its posterior extremity compressed upwards,
so as to form a short carina or keel ; foot very narrow. Man-
tle oblong-oval, fleshy, convex and prominent, rounded at
both extremities, equalling in length one-third of the length
of the body, its surface marked by prominent, irregularly
waved, concentrical lines and furrows, having their centre or
inhahitins^ the United States. 167
"o
the posterior part, and its edges on the whole circumference
unattached. Upper surface of body marked with longitudi-
nal lines, or shallow furrows, darker than the general surface,
sometimes black, anastomosing with each other, and forming
a sort of net-work ; between the reticulated lines are narrow,
irregular oblong plates, or smooth, flattened tubercles, giving
the surface the appearance of a mosaic work, with lines of
dark cement ; reticulations less distinct on the sides, and dis-
appearing towards the base ; a prominent tubercular ridge
extends from between the superior tentacles backward to the
mantle, with a furrow on each side. Superior tentacle cylin-
drical, about one-eighth of the length of the body, with small,
black, ocular points on the superior part of the terminal bulb ;
inferior tentacles immediately under the upper, very short.
Respiratory foramen near the posterior lateral edge of the
mantle, large, surrounded with a whitish border. Orifice of
rectum immediately adjacent, but a little above and anterior
to the respiratory foramen. Foot narrow ; locomotive band
bounded by two distinct longitudinal furrows. Generally
about one inch in length, but when fully grown nearly two
inches.
Geographical Distribution. Inhabits the neighborhood
of Boston, New York, Philadelphia, and other maritime cities.
Has not yet penetrated far into the interior of the country.
Remarks. In Dr. Gould's description of Limax tunicata,
he intimates a suspicion that it may prove identical with
Limax agrestis, Lin., and further observation has fully con-
firmed that supposition. It is undoubtedly of European ori-
gin, and I have not noticed it at any considerable distance
from the sea-coast. It is common in the neighborhood of
Boston, under stones at road-sides, and about stables and
farm-yards, and in other moist situations, under wet and de-
caying pieces of wood. It is also found in cellars and gar-
dens, but not in such numbers as to cause much mischief by
its depredations. In the city of Philadelphia it is more com-
mon, attains a large size, and is more destructive to vegetation.
A considerable number of individuals often congregate in the
same retreat. Their food appears to be the green leaves of
168 Binney on the Naked Air-Breathing Mollusca
succulent plants, and sometimes ripe fruits ; they feed during
the night, and are rarely found out of their retreats in the day
time. Their growth is rapid, the animal exuded from the
egg in the spring, arriving at full maturity and producing eggs
before the succeeding winter. They are active in their mo-
tions, and soon escape when disturbed. They defend them-
selves from injurious contact by instantly secreting at the part
touched a quantity of milky-white, glutinous mucus, and
suspend themselves, head downwards, and lower themselves
from plants and fences by forming a mucous thread which
they attach to the point from which thoy hang. They are
occasionally seen in this situation in rainy weather. During
the process of exuding the mucous thread, the alternate un-
dulating expansions and contractions of the locomotive band
of the foot are seen to take place, in the same manner as
when they are in motion on a plane surface.
This species varies very much in color, and descriptions by
different authors relying principally upon it, differ greatly
from each other ; but whatever may be the color, the peculiar
character of the furrows and tubercles remains constant. In
a state of contraction, the back is arched, the head is entirely
withdrawn under the mantle, the glands of the skin are very
prominent, making the surface appear rough, the carina is
more apparent, and the posterior extremity being a little
turned to one side, appears to be oblique. It is described by
some authors as constantly oblique, but the obliquity disap-
pears when the animal is fully extended. When in motion,
the head extends considerably beyond the mantle, and there
is an interval between its margin, and the base of the superi-
or tentacle, equal to the length of the tentacles. The mantle
adheres to the body by its posterior central portion, and it is
in this part of it that is found imbedded the testaceous rudi-
ment, or shell. This is oval, curved above, very thin and
delicate, having a transparent epidermis. At its posterior
part there is a slight apicial prominence and the appearance of
indistinct concentric lines of growth.
In the Philadelphia variety, the tubercles and furrows are
less strongly marked than in that found in the neighborhood
of Boston.
inhabiting the United States. 169
LIMAX CAMPESTRIS.
L. corpore succineo colore, cylindraceo, glandulis elevatis elongatis sub-rugo-
80 ; clypeo sub-antico, ovali-oblongo, lineis et suleis concentricis striato ; caud^
8ub-carinata ; apertura laterali postica.
SYNONYMIES AND REFERENCES.
Lim£ix campestris, nobis.
DESCRIPTION.
Colour usually of various shades of amber, without spois
or markings, sometimes blackish ; head and tentacles smoky.
Body cylindrical, elongated, terminating in a very short cari-
na at its posterior extremity. Mantle oval, fleshy, but little
prominent, with fine concentrical lines. Back covered with
prominent elongated tubercles and furrows. Foot narrow,
whitish. Respiratory foramen on the posterior dextral margin
of the mantle. Body covered with a thin, watery mucus.
Length, about one inch.
Geographical Distribution. Inhabits all the New Eng-
land States, New York and Ohio, and was found in IVIissouri
by Prof. Adams.
Remarks. The resemblances between some of the species
of this genus are so great that it is difficult to provide them
with distinctive characters, and it is only by close comparison
that their differences can be seen. The present species, al-
though considerably smaller, is nearly allied to Limax agrestis.
Its differential characters are as follows : It is always much
smaller, and at all ages possesses a peculiarly gelatinous or
semilransparent consistency. The tuberosities of the surface
are more prominent in proportion to their size, are not flattened
or plate-like, and are not separated by darker colored anasto-
mosing lines, the intervening furrows being of the same color
as the genera] surface. It does not secrete a milky mucus at
every part of the surface when touched. Like that species, it is
active in its motions, and suspends itself by a mucous thread.
This species appears to be common to all the northern parts
of the United States. It is found under decaying wood in
the forests and in open pastures, and under stones at road-sides.
From its wide distribution, it would seem to be indigenous.
22
170 Binney on the Naked Air-Breathing Mollusca
Its testaceous rudiment is minute and delicate in proportion
to the small size of the animal.
Genus Arion, Ferussac.
ARION HORTENSIS.
L. corpore albido, aut griseo, glandulis confertis, elongatis striato ; clypeo
anteriore, ovali, granuloso ; cauda obtusa, carina nulla ; aperturci lateral! posti-
ck ; margine fascia fusca obscure ornata.
SYNONYMES AND REFERENCES.
Arion hortensis, ferussac. Tah. Syst. p. 18.
Hist, des Moll, p. 66, pi. 2,f. 6.
Supplement, p. 06, a.
BOUCHARD-CHANTEREAUX. Catalogue, p. 24.
Limax hortensis, lamarck. Anim. sans Vert. Yl. p. 919.
DESCRIPTION.
Color of upper surface whitish or light ashy, sometimes
with a slight tinge of brown ; an obscure, ill-defined brownish
line extending along the lower margin of the mantle, and of
the body on both sides, meeting over the posterior extremity.
Body when extended cylindrical, narrow, very much elonga-
ted, expanding a little towards its posterior extremity, termi-
nating in a truncated point ; the upper surface crowded with
fine, oblong tuberosities, its flanks with elongated tuberculated
plates, with furrows between. Mantle small, oval, rather
narrow, flattened, its anterior margin nearly reaching the
head ; its surface covered with minute granulations ; about
one-fourth of the length of the body. Between the superior
tentacles a tubercular ridge with furrows on each side. Su-
perior tentacles darker than the general surface ; about one-
eighth of the length of the body, stout, cylindrical, with black
oculiferous points ; lower tentacles beneath the upper, very
short. Foot whitish, separated from the margin of the body
by a furrow, and projecting beyond the body posteriorly, with
a flat and rounded termination ; locomotive band not distin-
guished from the foot. At the posterior termination of the
body is the triangular sinus, or mucus pore. Respiratory
foramen very small, situated near the margin of the mantle,
inhabitins' the United States. 171
'O
about one-third of its length distant from its anterior ex-
tremity. Length rather more than one inch.
Geographical Distribution. Noticed hitherto only in
the neighborhood of Boston.
Remarks. In this species the head alone projects from
the mantle, no part of the neck being visible. It is constant-
ly covered with a watery mucus, and suspends itself by a
mucous thread, like many other species of this family. I
have not noticed any varieties of colors or markings. It
occurs only in small numbers, in company with Limax agres-
tis, under stones at road-sides. I give this species with some
hesitation, for the foreign descriptions and figures generally
do not apply to it, and unless two species are confounded to-
gether, the differences of color and markings in the varieties
are truly extraordinary. Ferussac's description of the variety,
" griseus, unicolor, fasciis nigris," is however so very applica-
ble to ours, and the figure referred to represents it so well,
that I cannot doubt that our animal is identical with that va-
riety. From its restricted locality, and small numbers, it is
probably an introduced species. It may, however, prove to
be a distinct species, and comparison of the foreign and native
animals can alone decide its character.
Genus, Tebennophorus.
TEBENNOPHORUS CAROLINIENSIS.
L. corpore albido, fusco irrorato, fasciis tribua inale-circumscriptis longitudin-
alibus, et punctis nigria sparsis, ornato ; clypeo Jato et elongate, dorsum integrum
vestiente, glandulis undulatis confusis conferto; apertura laterali anticd.
SYNONYMES AND REFERENCES.
Limax Caroliniensis, bosc. Buffon de Deterville, Coq. I. p. 80, pi.
8,Jig. I.
ferussac. Hist, des Moll. p. 11, pi. 6,/. 3.
LAMARCK. Anim. sans Vert. 2d edit. VI. 719.
Limax Carolinianus, de roissy. Buffon de Sonnini Moll., V. 183.
Philomycus Caroliniensis, ferussac. Tab. Syst. p. 15.
Supplement, p. 96, y.
Limax togata, gould. Invertehrata of Massachusetts, p. 3.
172 Binney on the Naked Air-Breathing Mollusca
DESCRIPTION.
Color of upper surface whitish, or yellowish white, varie-
gated with clouds and spots of brownish and blackish, so
arranged as to form three ill-defined longitudinal bands, one
on the centre of the back, and one on each flank, extending
from the head to the posterior extremity, anastomosing more
or less with each other, and having smaller spots of the same
color between them ; inferior margin white, or yellowish ;
foot whitish. Mouth surrounded with a circular row of
papillae. Body elongated, sub-cylindrical, flattened towards
its posterior extremity, which is obtuse ; superior tentacles
one fourth of an inch long, brownish or blackish, stout, ter-
minating in a bulb ; ocular points on the superior part of the
bulb ; inferior tentacles immediately below the upper, white,
very short, nearly conical. Mantle fleshy, covering the whole
body, its anterior edge tinged with brownish, and falling in a
shght curve between the two superior tentacles, reaching on
the sides to the superior margin of the foot ; posterior extrem-
ity rounded ; cuticle covered with irregular vermiform glands,
anastomosing with each other, and having a general tendency
to a longitudinal direction, with shallow furrows between,
lubricated with a watery mucus, and susceptible of contrac-
tions which produce a slow, undulatory motion, like the
flowing of water, over the whole surface. Foot whitish,
extending a little beyond the mantle posteriorly, showing a
whitish flattened border. Orifice of the organs of generation
on the right side at a little distance behind and below the
superior tentacle. Respiratory orifice large, on the right side,
one fourth of an inch behind the origin of the superior tenta-
cle ; anal orifice in close contact, a little above and in front of
it ; above the respiratory orifice on the back is a deep curved
furrow, running upwards and backwards. Locomotive band
not distinguished from the lower surface of the foot.
Greatest length, when fully extended, four inches.
Geographical Distribution. Was noticed by the origin-
al discoverer in South Carolina ; is common in Vermont, the
western part of Massachusetts, New York, and Ohio : and was
inhabiting the United States. 173
found in Missouri by Professor C. B. Adams, and by Mr.
Haldeman in the south-western angle of Virginia.
Remarks. In some individuals the whole upper surface is
irregularly clouded with brownish, without any tendency to
longitudinal arrangement ; in some, fine black spots are nu-
merous : in others, there are rows of large clouded spots ; a
single one was almost destitute of coloring. The head never
projects beyond the mantle. The tentacles are contractile
and retractile, as in the other species. When handled it se-
cretes from the skin a thick, milky, adhesive mucus, but I
have never seen it suspend itself by a mucous thread. I
have noticed its posterior extremity curved upwards when the
animal was in motion : at other times flattened and expanded,
and again very much corrugated, and apparently truncated ;
sometimes there appear to be one or more mucous glands at
this part, and the secretion of mucus from it is more plentiful
than from other parts of the body. The mantle is not cleft
from the respiratory foramen to the margin, as in some of
the species, but is provided with a deep furrow or canal run-
ning from the orifice to the edge of the mantle below it.
It is very inactive and sluggish in its motions. It inhabits
forests, under the bark, and in the interior of decayed trunks
of fallen trees, among which it is particularly partial to the
Bass-wood, Tilia Americana.
There can be no doubt that this is the animal originally
described by Bosc, under the name of Limax Caroliniensis^
though his description is so imperfect that it can only be re-
cognized by the arrangement of colors which are peculiar to
it. His original drawing, engraved in Ferussac's work, is a
tolerably accurate representation of one of the varieties. He
makes no mention of the mantle, and it does not appear in
the figure ; hence Ferussac took it for granted that it is desti-
tute of it, and placed the animal in Rafinesque's genus Phi-
lomycus, which is chiefly distinguished from Limax by the
absence of this organ. Yet with a singular inconsistency,
having adopted this genus with all Rafinesque's characters,
he arranges it under that division of the family containing
the species entirely covered by a mantle. And as the other
174 Binney on the Naked Air-Breathing Mollusca.
genera included in the same division, were supposed to pos-
sess only contractile tentacles, by a convenient method of
generalization he inferred that in the present species also the
tentacles were destitute of the power of retraction. The
editors of the new edition of Lamarck have again more re-
cently described it as destitute of a mantle, but in truth it
possesses a well characterized mantle, unattached to the body
at its anterior part, and around its whole margin, and as before
remarked, the tentacles are retractile. M. Ferussac also spec-
ulated upon the uses of this peculiar organization, which he
supposed might enable the animal to resist the heats of warm
climates ; it is, however, probably intended for some other
purpose, for it is found to inhabit the most northern portions of
the United States, where the winters are long and severe, and
by its habits it is in a great degree removed from the influ-
ence of heat.
It may be noticed that the description of Dr. Gould differs
essentially from mine ; this 2irises from his description having
been drawn up from specimens preserved in alcohol, which
had contracted them and entirely changed their aspect.
Genus Philomycus, Rafinesque.
PHILOMYCUS DORSALIS.
P, corpore cylindraceo, postice attenuato ; dorso linea longitudinali nigres-
cente interrupta et glandulis minutis longulis instructo ; clypeo nullo; apertura
lateral! parvo antica.
SYNONYMES AND REFERENCES.
Philomycus dorsalis, nobis.
DESCRIPTION.
Color of upper surface ashy, with a shade of blue, an inter-
rupted black line extending down the centre of the back ;
superior tentacles black, about one eighth of the length of
the body : lower tentacles blackish, very short. Body cylin-
drical and narrow, terminating posteriorly in an acute point ;
base of foot white, very narrow, its separation from the body
not well defined. Upper surface covered with elongated and
Storer on the Fishes of Massachusetts. 175
slightly prominent glandular projections, the furrows between
indistinct. Respiratory orifice very minute, situated on the
right side about one eighth of an inch behind the insertion of
the superior tentacle.
Length three-fourths of an inch.
Geographi'^al Distribution. Noticed hitherto only in
Vermont and Massachusetts.
Remarks. This animal is found in woods and forests, in
the soil under decaying trunks and logs. It is lubricated by
a watery mucus which is not secreted in quantity sufficient to
preserve its life when removed from its native hannts and ex-
posed to the air. It is therefore difficult to preserve it long
enough for examination, as it becomes dry, diminishes in bulk
more than one-half, and dies. I have seen but three speci-
mens. They were very active in their movements, and one
of them suspended itself by a mucous thread, in the manner
of the Liraaces. My specimens were found in Vermont.
Dr. Gould has recognized this or a similar species near Boston.
It is quite possible that this is one of the species described
by Rafinesque, but from the poverty of his descriptions I am
unable to identify it with either of them.
Art. XIV.— additional DESCRIPTIONS OF, AND OBSER-
VATIONS ON, THE FISHES OF MASSACHUSETTS. Br D.
Humphreys Storer, M. D. (Read December 15th, 184 J.)
Two years since, I presented to the chairman of the Zoo-
logical Commissioners of our State, a report upon the Fishes
of Massachusetts — the preparation of which, had occupied
much of my leisure during the two preceding seasons. When
that report was commenced I had devoted but little attention
to the subject, and was induced to undertake it because no
other member of the Society had made Ichthyology his study.
The duty was urged upon, not sought, by me. Could I have
selected my department, the chairman of the Commissioners
is well aware I should have chosen that branch of science
which had been among my earliest studies — which, from the
176 Storefs Descriptions of^ and Observations on,
foundation of this Society, I had zealously pursued — and
upon which, I had the honor of lecturing to the Society two
succeeding seasons — 1831-32. Nobly has another executed
that commission ; and I would congratulate my friend upon
the credit his labors have conferred upon himself, upon our
Society and New England. My task was undertaken, and
the result has been presented to you. Although my duties as
a Zoological Commissioner may have terminated with the
publication of my report, as your Ichthyological Curator, I
would now present such additional facts respecting our Fishes,
as I have since been able to collect, trusting that they may
facilitate the researches of the future Ichthyologists of Mass-
achusetts.
When my Report was published, I knew but one species of
Perca in our waters, and I felt quite confident that this was
the JiavescenSy Mitchill. Several months afterwards, Mr. C.
Harding, of this city, attracted by the unusual number of
transverse bands upon a specimen taken by him in Concord
river, kindly sent it to me for examination. I at once saw
that this must be the flavescens, as acknowledged by Cuvier,
and subsequently described and figured by Richardson, in the
'' Fauna Boreali Americana." In this specimen, ten bands
were perfectly distinct ; and the species was readily made out.
Soon after, I received several specimens of this species, from
Mr. Edward S. Hoar, of Concord, which were also taken in
Concord river. The species noticed in my Report, and our
most common species, is the granulata, Cuv., called at
Holmes' Hole, the Roach. The coloring of this latter species
differs exceedingly in different latitudes. A specimen taken at
Fresh Pond, Cambridge, was nearly of a grass-green through-
out its entire surface, excepting the fins.
I remarked in my Report, that besides the Pomotis vulgaris,
I was inclined to believe, from the information I had collect-
ed, that another species of Pomotis inhabited our waters.
Mr. E. S. Hoar, of Concord, has sent me three specimens of
a second species. It may be what Dr. Mitchill called Labrus
appendix, in his " Supplement to the Fishes of New York,"
although he makes no mention of the color of the fins, which
the Fishes of Massachusetts. 177
is a striking peculiarity in our fish. I introduce the follow-
ing description as of a species new to our Fauna. Should
it not prove to be the P. appendix, 1 would propose the name
of rubri-cauda, from a very characteristic mark it presents, a
blood-red colored tail.
PoMOTis RUBRi-CAUDA. The rcd-tailcd Pomotis.
Length of the fish five inches : the length of the head to the
outer angle of the operculum one inch and a half ; the depth of
the body across the base of the pectoral fins two inches. The
general color of the fish is a rusty brown, more strongly marked
above the middle of the body, which is caused by ferrugi-
nous spots being densely distributed along the scales ; these
spots are more sparse and more distinct below the lateral line ;
the body, upon the sides, is golden ; and beneath, in front of
the anal fin, of a blood-red color. The head, between and in
front of the eyes, is naked. A blueish white undulating line
runs from the upper jaw, just beneath the eye, across the
operculum and beneath the opercular membrane, to its poste-
rior extremity ; a second line of a similar character arises just
above this, and, interrupted by the eye, again commences back
of it, and passes over the opercular membrane — so that the
membranous appendage of the operculum, which is of a deep
uniform black color, three lines in length, and one line deep,
is included between these lines. Beneath the undulating
Hues just spoken of, are blueish-white blotches irregularly
distributed upon the preoperculum, some of them passing
downwards towards its lower edge. The eyes are three lines
in diameter — the pupils are black, the irides red. The lateral
line commences just above, and in front of the base of the
opercular membrane, and assumes the arch of the body.
The dorsal fin, anteriorly, is of a dark brown color, its pos-
terior portion is red, the spinous portion is not quite as high
as the soft rays. The ventral fins are red at their base, and
terminate in black extremities. The pectoral fins are of a yel-
lowish brown color. The anal fin is yellowish at its base,
and fuliginous at its margin. The caudal fin is of a blood-
red color when the fish is alive.
23
178 Storefs Descriptions of, and Observations on.
The fin rays are as follows : — D. 11 — 9 ; P. 11 ; V. 1 — 5 ;
A. 3—9 ; C. 18.
I described the Prionotus Carolinus from the only speci-
men I had then seen, which was sent me by Dr. Yale from
Holmes' Hole. In September, 1840, I received a beautiful
specimen, twelve inches long, taken in a net at Green Island,
by Capt. Nathaniel Blanchard ; and Mr. Henry Sheafe has
lately sent the Society two other specimens, captured at Phil-
lip's Point, Lynn.
But three specimens of a species belonging to a genus
which I called Cryptacanthodes, (and which I am gratified
to know has been adopted by Dr. Dekay, in his Report on the
Zoology of New York, now in the course of preparation, ) had
been met with. Since my Report was published, a specimen
has been presented me by Mr. Henry Bryant, of this Society,
as having been found on the shore at Commercial Point ; and
another specimen, which formerly belonged to the New Eng-
land Museum, is now in the cabinet of the Boston Museum.
During the last summer. Dr. Leach of .this city, sent me a
fine specimen of the Umbrina nebulosa, fifteen inches in
length, which was taken in a net at Lynn. I had previously
seen but one specimen, and although my description was
drawn up from that specimen, which had been for years pre-
served in spirits, the colors were so exceedingly well preserv-
ed, (as I had an opportunity to decide by comparing the two,)
that any further description is unnecessary. The fresh fish
when boiled was very palatable.
The specimen of the Pelamts sarda, which I described,
was received from Holmes' Hole, where, Dr. Yale informed
me, it had been not unfrequently met with of late. In June,
1840, I received a specimen from Dr. William Prescott, of
Lynn, who wrote me '' it was taken, with another specimen,
hanging by its teeth to the meshes of a net which had been
set for Menhaden, They are considered by our fishermen as
very rare^ but few having been taken or seen by them in our
waters." I have heard of a few specimens having been
taken in the vicinity of Nahant.
the Fishes of Massachusetts. 1 79
Cybium maculatum. Cuv. The spotted Mackerel.
Scomber maculatus. Mitchill. Transactions of ihe Lil. and Phi losop. So-
ciety of New York, I. 42G, et fig.
Cybium maculatum. Cuv. et Valenc. Hi>t. Nat. des Poissons, t. VIII. 181.
I have the pleasure to present to this Society a specimen of
this species, taken on the 24th of July, 1841, in a net at Lynn,
together with several specimens of the Temnodon saltator.
This species is entirely unknown to the numerous fishermen
who have examined it ; and it is the only specimen I have
heard of as being taken in the waters of our State. Dr.
Mitchill described and figured it in his '' Fishes of New
York," under the common name of '' Spanish Mackerel,"
which is the Scomber colias. When first taken, it is a very
beautiful fish, but the brilliancy of its colors is soon effaced.
The specimen referred to, is twenty one inches in length ;
its greatest depth, measured from the origin of the first dorsal
fin, is about four inches — its greatest thickness is two inches.
The top of the head, and the upper part of the sides of
the body, are of a dark leaden color ; the sides are lighter ;
the jaws, opercula, and abdomen are of a beautiful clear
white, presenting a satin like appearance — the dorsal ridge,
throughout its whole extent, is of a beautiful dark green col-
or ; twenty or more bright yellow spots, the largest being
three-eighths of an inch in diameter, situated above and be-
neath the lateral line, ornament its sides — the most anterior of
these spots is beneath the pectoral fins — the largest number of
the spots is anterior to the dorsal fin.
The length of the head is three and a half inches, termi-
nated anteriorly in a sharp point. The eyes are half an inch
in diameter : the pupils are black, the irides are golden. The
anterior nostril is the smaller, and is semicircular : the posterior
nostril, which is situated directly in front of the centre of the
eye, is a transverse slit. The upper jaw terminates in a point :
the prominent tip of the lower jaw projects slightly beyond
the upper : both of the jaws are furnished with a single row
of prominent, sharp, triangular teeth — those situated towards
the angle of the jaws, the largest : the gape of the mouth
when expanded, measures from the tip of the jaws two
inches.
180 Storer^s Descriptions of, and Observations on.
The lateral line which is raised above the general surface of
the fish, arises half of an inch above the origin of the pectoral
fin, and in the language of Mitchill, '' does not travel straight,
but crooks and meanders along prettily towards the tail."
The first dorsal fin, which is five inches long, arises less
than an inch back of the operculum : its anterior portion is
much higher than the posterior : the membrane connecting the
first eight rays is black — the remaining portion is white, ex-
cept at its edge, which is black : the second and third rays,
which are the highest, are one and a half inch high : all the
rays project above the membrane, and are furnished with del-
icate filaments.
The second dorsal fin commences three-eighths of an inch
back of the first : it is of a lead color, two inches long, one
and a half inches high at its highest point : eight finlets about
three-eighths of an inch high, of the same color as the fin, are
situated between it and the tail.
The pectoral fins which are falciform, arise directly back of
the angle of the operculum — they are six lines long and two
inches high ; black beneath, above lighter.
The ventral fins are white — two lines long, and seven lines
high.
The anal fin arises opposite the middle of the second dorsal
fin, and is of the same length as that fin : eight finlets, similar
in form to those of the dorsal, are seen beyond the anal fin.
The caudal fin is lunated — four inches high — five inches
deep at its extremity, when expanded. At the base of this
fin is a lateral prominent carina, upon which the lateral line
terminates ; and on each side of this, are two smaller carinas
running the entire length of the fleshy portion of the tail.
The fin rays are as follows :— D. 18—17 ; P. 20 ; V. 4 ;
A. 18 ; C. 26.
While preparing my Report, no species gave me more
trouble to classify than that, which I there stated, '' after con-
siderable hesitation I have concluded to be the ' Trachino-
Tus ARGENTEus. Cuv.' " Dr. Dckay writes me that Mr. Coz-
zens also considered it a Trachinotus, in a paper he read
several years since to a Natural History Society, and gave it
the Fishes of Massachusetts. 181
the specific name of Cumherlandi. It appears that Dr.
Mitchill pubUshed a " Supplement to his Fishes of New
York," in ^' The American Monthly Magazine and Critical
Review" for 1818. Of the existence of this paper I never
heard, until long after my Report had been published. In
that supplement he described this fish, and very well too, un-
der the name of " Coryphoana perciformis — Rudder fish, or
Perch Coryphene." This species, however, is not a Cory-
phoena ; and Dr. Dekay while he retains the specific name
of Dr. Mitchill, has formed a new genus to receive it, which
he calls Palinurus, from the circumstance of the fish being
sometimes called the Pilot fish.
In my account of the Peprilus triacanthus, I omitted
to mention that it is generally known among our fishermen as
the Sheep^s head — which is the cause of no little confusion,
it being confounded with the Sargus ovis, so extensively
known south of Cape Cod, by the same common name.
Trichiurus lepturus. Lin. Silvery hair-tail.
Trichiurus lepturus. Lin. Bloch, pt. V. pi. 158.
" '< Strack's plates, pi. XX. fig. I.
** " Griffith's Cuv. X. 347.
« " Cuv. et Valenc. Hist. Nat. des Poise. VIII. 237.
*» •« Yarrell's British Fishes. I. 182 et fig.
Trichiurus argentcus. Shaw's Gen. Zool. IV. 90 et fig.
« " Mitchill, Trans. Lit. et Phil. Soc. N. Y. I. 364.
I am indebted to Dr. J. B. Forsyth, of Sandwich, for the
only specimen of this species I have known to be taken upon
our coast. It was cast upon the beach at Buttermilk Bay. in
the north-eastern corner of l^uzzard's Bay, during the last
summer, and was found while yet in a state of good preserva-
tion. A portion of the posterior extremity is now lost, but it
still measures two feet and ten inches in length. As its form
has lost its proportions in being dried — and its colors are effa-
ced — as its dorsal fin is mutilated, and its tail is broken,
while I present you with the specimen itself, I would ex-
tract the following description of Mitchill, as being sufficient-
ly clear, and much more accurate than, with such means as I
have, I could hope to make it.
182 Store7'^s Descriptions of, and Observatimis on,
" Silvery hair-tail. (Trichiurus argenteus,) with the lower
jaw jutting beyond the upper, and a snake-like tail.
Length two feet and four inches ; depth at the belly two
inches and a half. I measured one August 1, 1814, that was
three feet and two inches long, which weighed one pound and
a quarter. Figure flat, and thin sideways. Color silvery,
with a golden lateral line. This descends from the gill open-
ing, and runs low along the belly. Dorsal fin reaches from
the back of the head almost to the tail, which is finless, and
ends in an attenuated point. No anal nor ventral fins : but a
row of notches or spines along the tail, as far forward as the
vent, rendering it somewhat carinated. Gill-openings wide.
Eyes yellov/, and occupy much space in the flat vertical
cheeks. Space between the eyes flattish, giving the head an
angular configuration. Nostrfls ample, mouth capacious, and
jaws armed with teeth. Lower jaw projects, and has two
teeth jutting beyond the upper, when the mouth is shut.
The upper jav/ has, in front, from three to six teeth larger
than the rest. All the teeth of the larger order are jagged on
the inner or hinder sides, with a single barb towards the
points. Throat capacious, and tongue smooth. No scales.
Laterally the teeth of the upper jaw project over the sides of
the lower. And when the jaws are closed, it is frequently
possible to look through the mouth from side to side."
I considered the Fistularia which had belonged to the
Cabinet of this Society for several yeais, and which was ta-
ken at Holmes' Hole, to be the serrata, Bloch — although I
had no volume to refer to, which would settle the matter with
certainty. Dr. Dekay assures me that I " was right in the
species, as he compared the specimen 1 described, with one he
brought from Brazil, some years ago."' By an inadvertency,
the specimen I described is said in my Report to be ten inches
long : it should read twentyseven inches.
My friend, C. H. Olmsted, Esq. of Hartford, informs me
that the Leuciscus cornutus, (described by Mitchill in the
'• American Monthly Magazine," and specimens of which,
from New York and Connecticut, we have in our Cabinet,) is
common in the small streams of Berkshire County.
the Fishes of Massachusetts, 183
Having carefully compared our common Shad with Yar-
rell's description of the Alosa communis, the points of resem-
blance were so numerous that I felt compelled to consider it
as identical with the foreign fish. Dr Dekay informs me that
it has been somewhere described as a new species, under the
name of sapidissima.
I have but little doubt that a species of Sole a, Cuv., is
found in our waters, from the description given me, by Mr
Newcomb, of Gluincy Market, of a fish seen by him during
the last season.
But a single specimen of the Achirus mollis had been
met with, when I concluded my Report, which was taken at
Holmes' Hole. In April, 1840, I received a beautiful speci-
men, six inches in length, with the transverse bands upon the
sides very distinct, which was caught at iXahant.
A second specimen of the Echexeis, which I considered
the 7iauc?^ates I have seen within a few weeks. It was taken
at Hyannis, south side of Barnstable, Cape Cod. Dr Mitch-
ill's " Supplement*' has enabled me to identify this fish, as the
species described by him under the name of E. alha-cauda.
His description is rather a general one, but it is sufficient to
determine the species.
Tetraodon mathematicus. Mitchill. Mathematical Tetra-
odon.
Mathematical Tetrodon. (Tetrodon mathematicus.) Mitcliill. Trans. Lit.
et Phil. Soc. N. Y. Vol. I. 474 et fig.
A fine specimen of this beautiful species was taken at Nan-
tucket during the last summer, and now belongs to Mr Stack-
house of this city. Its entire length is twentythree inches :
its greatest depth is four and a half inches : its greatest width
across from the pectoral fin, is four inches. The head and
entire back, are of a deep olive-green color ; the sides are
silvery ; the inferior portion of the fish is of a pure white.
The whole surface of the body is perfectly smooth, with
the exception of the space beneath, bounded anteriorly by the
throat, laterally by the pectoral fins, and posteriorly by the
184 Storer^s Description of, and Observations on,
anuSj — which is studded with innumerable stellated spines.
Length of the head four inches : the distance between the
eyes, is nearly three inches. The eyes are oblong, one inch
long in their greatest diameter. The nostrils are situated near-
ly an inch in front of, and rather above, the anterior angle of
the eyes. The vertical gape of the mouth is an inch in extent :
the lips are fleshy and lax. The jaws are very strong.
About half of an inch back of the angle of the jaws, a line
commences, which appears like a scratch upon the skin ;
this passes backward to the posterior extremity of the eye,
being less than half of an inch beneath the eye, then ascends
obliquely to a point upon the back two inches above the mid-
dle of the pectoral fin, then curves downwards to the middle
of the side of the fish to a point about an inch back of the
dorsal fin, whence it pursues a straight course to the caudal
rays. This line from its origin also passes upward and back-
wards, just exterior to the nostrils, and curving high up over
the eyes passes back of them and downward to meet the
former line about half of an inch back of the eyes, thus form-
ing a ring around them. Directly above the base of the pec-
toral fins, a transverse line crosses from the lateral line on one
side to that on the other. From this transverse line, an un-
dulating line passes to the ring around the eyes. '
The dorsal fin is situated upon the posterior half of the
body : its length is equal to one third of its height.
The pectoral fins arise about an inch and a half back of
the eyes ; they are somewhat quadrangular in their appear-
ance : their length is more than an inch.
The anal fin is opposite to the dorsal ; it is of the same form
as that fin, and about the same size.
The caudal fin is considerably forked ; it is an inch long,
and four inches high.
The fin rays are as follows : — D. 13 ; P. 16 ; A. 12 ; C. 11.
My description of the Acipenser oxyrinchus was drawn up
from a specimen two feet and three inches in length. During
the last season I received another specimen found on the beach
at Deer Island, nearly six feet in length.
the Fishes of Massachusetts. 185
I remarked in my Report, that Dr. Yale informed me that a
species of Zygjena was found at Hohiies' Hole,
Within a few weeks, Winslow Lewis, Esq., brought a fish
of this genus from Chatham, Cape Cod, ; t which place it was
taken with a second specimen, in a net. It was considered
by the fishermen there, as a great curiosity. 1 have been
kindly presented with the specimen, which now lies before
you, and would offer the following description.
Zycena malleus. Yalenc. The hammer-headed Shark.
ZygcBTia malleus. Valenciennes; Memoires du Mus. d'Hist. Nat. t. IV. p.
122. et fig.
The entire length of the specimen is two feet and four
inches. All the upper part of the body is of a dark greyish
brown color : beneath, it is hg liter. The length of the head
is three inches, it is rounded anteriorly, very much compress-
ed at its sides, convex at the occiput. The greatest width
across the head, is nine inches : the external margins of the
sides of the head are rounded, having the eyes situated at
their anterior extremity : in front of the eyes, the anterior
angle is quite prominent, beneath this angle, in a slight emar-
gination, are situated the nostrils : the posterior portion of the
sides of the head, is bordered by a membrane. The eyes
are prominent and six lines in diameter. The QJiouth is sit-
uated beneath, two inches back of the snout, and measures
across from the angles, a little more than two inches. The
teeth are numerous in both jaws, sharp and triangular, having
a prolonged base. There are five branchial apertures u]X)n
each side — the anterior is the largest.
The first dorsal fin, which is triangular, is situated a little
less than three inches back of the head, behind the pectoral
fins.
The second dorsal fin is quite small, rounded at its upper pos-
terior extremity, and elongated at its lower posterior extremi-
ity into almost a filament : this fin arises about three inches
in front of the caudal fin.
The pectoral fins, which are triangular, arise at the base of
the fourth branchial orifice.
24
186 Storer^s Description of^ and Observations 07i,
The ventral fins commence just back of the middle of the
Ijody — and are about two inches in length.
The anal fin commences anterior to the second dorsal,
and is not continued as far back as the posterior extremity of
that fin.
The length of the upper lobe of the caudal fin is equal, as
was observed by Valenciennes, to the width of the head.
The lower lobe is equal in length to one-third of the upper lobe.
This description is necessarily imperfect, being drawn up
from a dead specimen ; but as I have never before seen
a specimen which had been taken in our waters, I was un-
willing to let it pass unnoticed.
The confusion which existed in the genus Zygcena — the
mistakes which were constantly made by Ichthyologists when
speaking of the different species, led Valenciennes to prepare
a monograph of the genus, which was published, illustrated
with admirable plates, in the ninth volume of the '' Memoires
du Museum d'Histoire Naturelle."
The plates of Shaw and Strack, and others who copied
from them, were calculated to mislead ; but the figures of
Valenciennes, accompanied with clear descriptions, settle the
species with precision.
Dr. Yale informed me that a formidable species of Sting-
Ray was found at Holmes' Hole, which he had frequently
seen. As I had never had an opportunity of examining this
species, I was not ready to consider it the pastinaca, the com-
mon Sting-Ray, found on the shores of Great Britain, — and
made therefore a simple reference only, in my Report, to a
species of Trygon being found along our coast. In October
1840, Dr. Yale sent me the head and tail of a species " whose
whole length" he stated " including the tail, was ten and a
half feet : its breadth was four and a half feet at its widest
part." The jaws were furnished with numerous rows of
rhomboidal teeth. The tail was six feet and three inches
long ; more than four inches wide at its origin, and tapering to
a point at its extremity. A single row of spines was situated
at the commencement of the tail — and six or eight inches
the Fishes of Massachusetts. 187
farther back, upon the sides and benealh, numerous smaller
spines were scattered throughout its whole extent : the under
edge of the tail was bordered by a fleshy membrane which
commenced anterior to two very strong spines situated upon
the dorsum of the tail — the anterior one is five inches long,
one half inch wide at its base, and pointed at its extremity :
the posterior spine is less than half the length of the former :
both of the spines armed upon the edges with numerous re-
troverted teeth.
I have also received from Dr. Yale another tail of a Try-
gon which I suppose to be of this same species. It is forty
inches in length, and differs in no important particular from
the preceding one, save in the proportions of the serrated
spines, which are of equal length — both being four inches
long. I suppose these detached portions to belong to that
species called Raia centroura, Prickly-tailed Sting-Ray, by
Mitchill in his '' History of the Fishes of New York."
To Dr. Yale I am also indebted for the tail, and portions of
the jaw, of a species of the genus Myltobatis, Dumeril. In
this genus, " the jaws are furnished with broad, flat teeth,
placed like flags in a pavement, and diifering in size according
to the species : the tail is extremely long and slender, termi-
nating in a point, and is crowned, like that of a Trygon, with
a strong spine notched on both sides, supporting near its base,
and before the spine, a small dorsaL"
I know of but one American species having been describ-
ed— Raia quadriloba, Lesueur. That was taken at Egg
Harbor, New Jersey, and was evidently not the species we
are now considering. The jaws of our species, are furnished
with rows of smooth, flat, elongated plates, with rhomboidal
plates exterior to these. The tail, which is thirty inches long
from the anus, is of a dirty brjwn color, and perfectly
smooth : in its present dried state, it is an inch and a half
wide at its origin, and tapers to a point. Two inches back
of the anus is situated the dorsal fin, which is subtriangular,
and a little more than an inch long. At the posterior extremity
of the dorsal fin is a strong naked spine, three inches in
length, closely serrated upon its sides, from its base nearly to
188 Storer^s Descriptions of^ and Observations on^
its point : and beneath this, is a second similar spine, four
inches long. In Lesueur's species, the lateral plates in the
jaws, being of a similar form with the central ones, appear in
his figure, as mere prolongations of these plates. And the
tail in that species was armed with a single spine.
With the fragment of a jaw and the tail merely, it is diffi-
cult to characterize a species, the other organs of which,
may present striking peculiarities. Unless, however, future
research should show the species to which these belong, to
possess some remarkably distinct character, I would propose
the specific name of hispinosiis.
In January, 1840, Dr. Prescott, of Lynn, sent me a portion
of a Shark's jaw, taken from a species captured near that place
in that month. The fish was supposed to weigh about
1000 pounds : the jaws are of equal length, and the gape of
the mouth was wide. The fragment of the lower jaw, to
which the hook was attached, was the only portion removed
by the fishermen. The teeth of this species have no points of
resemblance with those of the Carcharias obscurus, nor Lam-
na punctata — the edges of the former are serrated through-
out— and the latter are very small and triangular. With the
minute conical teeth of the Squahis elephas no one could con-
found them ; and their difference from those of the Carcha-
rias vulpes is at once recognized by the ichthyologist. The
portion of the jaw before me is six inches in length, and two
inches wide at its tip. From the tip of the jaw, to the pos-
terior angle on each side, are situated seven teeth : the two
on each side of the chin are longer, narrower, and straiter
than those exterior to them. Dr. Prescott observed in
his letter to me, that when taken, "it exhibited three, and in
some places four rows of long narrow teeth." Now that the
soft parts are removed, the two teeth next the chin, are seen
continued back into the mouth seven rows deep : in the first
row, the two exterior teeth are shorter than the third within
them ; this third tooth, with the two still within it, are about
the same size : the outer tooth of the second row, is of the
same height as the third of the first row, and in this row they
the Fishes of Massachusetts. 189
pass backwards, decreasing as in the first row. The teeth of
the other five rows differ very much from tiiose spoken of, in
their form — they are shorter, wider and less stout — curving
towards the angle of the jaw ; those of the sixth and seventh
rows being shorter than those of the previous three rows.
Mitchill in his " Fishes of New York," refers to a shark
which he calls Sqiialus Atnericaiuis, Shaw. Subsequently to
this, he considered it an undescribed species in his '' Supple-
ment," and from the great size of its teeth, proposed for it the
name of Squalus macrodon^ or long-toothed shark. Om' fish
is probably identical with that species ; should it prove not to
be the same, upon the examination of a perfect specimen, it
must constitute a new species.
The members of the Society will remember that in a '' Sup-
plement" to my Report, I added descriptions of the Lophius
FiscATORius and Squalls elephas, made from recent speci-
mens : and that while the reprint of my Report was passing
through the press, I was enabled to add a description of the
Squalus obscurus, also prepared from a recent specimen, in
the second volume of our Journal.
In my account of the Orthagoriscus mola, when speaking
of the great elasticity of its flesh, I observed, ''its flesh is
sometimes used for balls." As this expression may appear
rather indefinite, I would remark that Dr. Yale, when wri-
ting respecting this species, says " what is most peculiar in
this fish is, an entire cartilaginous case, of an inch and a half
to two inches thick, covering the whole body — perfectly
white and milky in appearance, and very elastic. A small
ball of it, cut out and thrown, with moderate force, upon the
ground, will rebound from fifteen to twenty feet." And, in a
newspaper published in this city, several years since, in which
reference was made to a sj:>ecimen of this species having
been taken at one of the wharves, I found the following ob-
servation. " Several of the fish of this species have been
caught at Halifax, N. S. where the boys make balls of the
flesh, it being remarkably elastic."
By the assistance of my friends, I have been enabled to of-
190 Distinctive Characteristics of the
fer the foregoing observations. I shall continue, as opportimi-
ties may occur, to present you with additional information rC'
specting our Ichthyology.
Art. XV.— an INQUIRY INTO THE DISTINCTIVE CHARAC-
TERISTICS OF THE ABORIGINAL RACE OF AMERICA.
By Samuel George Morton, M. D. (Read at the Annual Meeting,
April 27, 1842.)
To the Members of the Boston Society of J\tatural Histoj-y.
Gentlemen — On receiving the highly flattering invitation
to deliver yonr Annual Address, it occurred to me that nothing
would be so appropriate as a review of the present state of
Natural Science in this country : but having almost simulta-
neously received the Address of Mr. Teschemacher for the past
year, I found it so full and satisfactory on this question as to
leave little or nothing for further discussion. I have there-
fore been induced to seek another field of inquiry, and in so
doing, have very naturally turned to a subject which has long
occupied my leisure hours, and which, though frequently ex-
amined, may yet, I trust, be recurred to with pleasure and in-
struction. I propose to take a rapid glance at what I conceive
to be the peculiar traits of the Aboriginal race of America, as
embraced in five principal considerations, viz : — their organ-
ic, moral and intellectual characters, their mode of interment
and their maritime enterprise ; and from these 1 shall venture to
draw a few definite conclusions. I am aware that it may ap-
pear presumptuous to attempt so wide a range within the brief
limits of the present occasion, especially as some points can
be touched only in the most general manner ; but my object
has been to dwell rather upon some of these which have hith-
erto received less attention than they obviously deserve, and
which are intimately involved in the present inquiry. With
this explanation I submit to your indidgent consideration the
contents of the following memoir.
S. G. MORTON.
Aboriginal Race of America. 191
Anthropology, the Natural History of Man, is essentially
a modern Science. At a time when the study of Nature in
her other departments, had been prosecuted with equal zeal
and success, this alone, the most important of them all, re-
mained comparatively neglected and unkno\vn ; and of the
various authors who have attempted its exposition during the
past and present centuries, too many have been content with
closet theories, in which facts are perverted to sustain some
baseless conjecture. Hence it has been aptly remarked that
Asia is the country of fables, Africa of monsters, and America
of systems, to those who prefer hypothesis to truth.
The intellectual genius of antiquity justly excites our ad-
miration and homage ; but in vain we search its records for
the physical traits of some of the most celebrated nations of
past time. It is even yet gravely disputed whether the an-
cient Egyptians belonged to the Caucasian race or to the Ne-
gro ; and was it not for the light which now dawns upon us
from their monuments and their tombs, this question might
remain forever undecided. The present age, however, is
marked by a noble zeal for these inquiries, wiiich are daily
making man more conversant with the organic structure, the
mental character and the national affinities of the various and
widely scattered tribes of the human family.
Among these the aboriginal inhabitants of America claim
our especial attention. This vast theatre has been thronged,
from immemorial time, by numberless tribes which lived only
to destroy and be in turn destroyed, without leaving a trace of
their sojourn on the face of the earth. Contrasted with these
were a few civilized communities, whose monuments awaken
our surprise without unfolding their history ; and he who
would unravel their mysteries may be compared, in the lan-
guage of the poets, to a man standing by the stream of time,
and striving to rescue from its waters the wrecked and shat-
tered fragments which float onward to oblivion.
It is not my present intention even to enumerate the many
theories which have been advanced in reference to the origin
of the American nations ; although I may, in the sequel, in-
quire whether their genealogy can be traced to the Polyne-
102 Distinctive Characteristics of the
sians or Mongolians, Hindoos, Jews or Egyptians. Nor shall
I attempt to analyse the views of certain philosophers who
imagine that they have found not only a variety of races, but
several species of men among the aborigines of this conti-
nent. It is chiefly my intention to produce a few of the
more strikingly characteristic traits of these people to sustain
the position that all the American nations, excepting the Es-
kimaux, are of one race, and that this race is peculiar, and
distinct from all others.
1. Physical Characteristics. It is an adage among travel-
lers that he who has seen one tribe of Indians, has seen all,
so much do the individuals of this race resemble each other,
notwithstanding their immense geographical distribution, and
those differences of climate which embrace the extremes of
heat and cold. The half-clad Fuegian, shrinking from his
dreary winter, has the same characteristic lineaments, though
in an exaggerated degree, as the Indians of the tropical plains ;
and these again resemble the tribes which inhabit the region
west of the Rocky Mountains, those of the great valley of the
Mississippi, and those again which skirt the Eskimaux on the
North. All possess alike the long, lank, black hair, the brown
or cinnamon colored skin, the heavy brow, the dull and
sleepy eye, the full and compressed lips, and the salient but
dilated nose. These traits, moreover, are equally common to
the savage and civilized nations ; whether they inhabit the
margins of rivers and feed on fish, or rove the forest and sub-
sist on the spoils of the chase.
It cannot be questioned that physical diversities do occur,
equally singular and inexplicable, as seen in different shades
of color, varying from a fair tint to a complexion almost
black ; and this too under circumstances in which climate
can have little or no influence. So also in reference to stat-
ure, the differences are remarkable in entire tribes which,
moreover, are geographically proximate to each other. These
facts, however, are mere exceptions to a general rule, and do
not alter the peculiar physiognomy of the Indian, which is as
undeviatingly characteristic as that of the Negro ; for wheth-
er we see him in the athletic Charib or the stunted Chayma,
Aboriginal Race of America. 193
ia the dark Californiaii or the fair Borroa, he is an Indian still,
and cannot be mistaken for a being of any other race.
The same conformity of organization is not less obvious in
the osteological structure of these people, as seen in the
squared or rounded head, the flattened or vertical occiput, the
high cheek bones, the ponderous maxillae, the large quadran-
gular orbits, and the low, receding forehead. I have had op-
portunity to compare nearly four hundred crania, derived from
tribes inhabiting almost every region of both Americas, and
have been astonished to find how the preceding characters, in
greater or less degree, pervade them all.
This remark is equally applicable to the ancient and mod-
ern nations of our continent ; for the oldest skulls from the
Peruvian cemeteries, the tombs of Mexico and the mounds of
our own country, are of the same type as the heads of the
most savage existing tribes. Their physical organization
proves the origin of one to have been equally the origin of
all. The various civilized nations are to this day represented
by their lineal descendants who inhabit their ancestral seats,
and differ in no exterior respect from the wild and unculti-
vated Indians ; at the same time, in evidence of their lineage,
Clavigero and other historians inform us, that the Mexicans and
Peruvians yet possess a latent mental superiority which has
not been subdued by three centuries of despotism. And
again, with respect to the royal personages and other privi-
leged classes, there is indubitable evidence that they were of
the same native stock, and presented no distinctive attributes
excepting those of a social or political character.
The observations of Molina and Humboldt are sometimes
({uoted in disproof of this pervading uniformity of physical
characters. Molina says that the difference between an in-
habitant of Chili and a Peruvian is not less than between an
Italian and a German ; to which Humboldt adds, that the
American race contains nations whose features differ as essen-
tially from one another as those of the Circassians, Moors and
Persians. But all these people are of one and the same race^
and readily recognized as such, notwithstanding their differ-
25
194 Distinctive Characteristics of the
ences of feature and complexion ; and the American nations
present a precisely parallel case.
I was at one time inclined to the opinion that the ancient
Peruvians, who inhabited the islands and confines of the
Lake Titicaca, presented a congenital form of the head en-
tirely different from that which characterizes the great Amer-
ican race ; nor could I at first bring myself to believe that
their wonderfully narrow and elongated crania, resulted solely
from artificial compression applied to the rounded head of the
Indian. That such, however, is the fact has been indisputa-
bly proved by the recent investigations of M. D'Orbigny.
This distinguished naturalist passed many months on the
table-land of the Andes which embraces the region of these
extraordinary people, and examined the desiccated remains of
hundreds of individuals in the tombs where they have lain
for centuries. M. D'Orbigny remarked that while many of
the heads were deformed in the manner to which we have
adverted, others differed in nothing from the usual conforma-
tion. It was also observed that the flattened skulls were uni-
formly those of men, while those of the women remained
unaltered; and again, that the most elongated heads were
preserved in the largest and finest tombs, shewing that this
cranial deformity was a mark of distinction. But to do away
with any remaining doubt on this subject, M. D'Orbigny as-
certained that the descendants of these ancient Peruvians yet
inhabit the land of their ancestors, and bear the name of
Aymaras, which may have been their primitive designation ;
and lastly, the modern Aymaras resemble the common Q,ui-
chua or Peruvian Indians in every thing that relates to phys-
ical conformation, not even excepting the head, which, how-
ever they have ceased to mould artificially.
Submitted to the same anatomical test, the reputed giant
and dwarf races of America prove to be the mere inventions
of ignorance or imposition. A careful inspection of the re-
mains of both, has fully satisfied me that the asserted gigantic
form of some nations has been a hasty inference on the part
of unpractised observers : while the so-called pygmies of the
valley of the Mississippi were mere children, who, for reasons
Aboriginal Race of America. 195
not wholly understood, were buried apart from the adult peo-
ple of their tribe.
Thus it is that the American Indian, from the southern ex-
tremity of the continent to the northern Umit of his range, is
the same exterior man. With somewhat variable stature and
complexion, his distinctive features, though variously modified,
are never effaced ; and he stands isolated from the rest of
mankind, identified at a glance in every locality, and under
every variety of circumstance ; and even his desiccated re-
mains which have withstood the destroying hand of time,
preserve the primeval type of his race, excepting only when
art has interposed to pervert it.
2. Moral Traits. These are perhaps, as strongly marked
as the physical characteristics of which we have just spoken ;
but they have been so often the subject of analysis as to claim
only a passing notice on the present occasion. Among the
most prominent of this series of mental operations is a sleep-
less caution, an untiring vigilance which presides over every
action and masks every motive. The Indian says nothing and
does nothing without its influence : it enables him to deceive
others without being himself suspected : it causes that pro-
verbial taciturnity among strangers which changes to garruli-
ty among the people of his own tribe ; and it is the basis of
that invincible firmness which teaches him to contend unre-
piningly with every adverse circumstance, and even with
death in its most hideous forms.
The love of war is so general, so characteristic, that it
scarcely calls for a comment or an illustration. One nation
is in almost perpetual hostility with another, tribe against
tribe, man against man ; and with this ruling passion are link-
ed a merciless revenge and an unsparing destructiveness. The
Chickasaws have been known to make a stealthy march of
six hundred miles from their own hunting grounds, for the
sole purpose of destroying an encampment of their enemies.
The small island of JNantucket, which contains but a few
square miles of barren sand, was inhabited at the advent of
the European colonies by two Indian tribes, who sometimes
196 Distinctive Characteristics of the
engaged in hot and deadly feud with each other. But what
is yet more remarkable, the miserable natives of Terra del
Fuego, whose common privations have linked them for a time
in peace and fellowship, become suddenly excited by the
same inherent ferocity and exert their puny efforts for mutual
destruction. Of the destructive propensity of the Indian,
which has long become a proverb, it is almost unnecessary to
speak ; but we may advert to a forcible example from the nar-
rative of a traveller who accompanied a trading party of
northern Indians on a long journey ; during which he declares
that they killed every living creature that came within their
reach ; nor could they even pass a bird's nest without slaying
the young or destroying the eggs.
That philosophic traveller. Dr. Yon Martins, gives a graphic
view of the present states of natural and civil rights among
the American aborigines. Their sub-division, he remarks,
into an almost countless multitude of greater and smaller
groups, and their entire exclusion and excommunication with
regard to each other, strike the eye of the observer like the
fragments of a vast ruin, to which the history of the other
nations of the earth furnishes no analogy. '' This disruption
of all the bands by which society was anciently held togeth-
er, accompanied by a Babylonish confusion of tongues, the
rude right of force, the never ending tacit warfare of all
against all, springing from that very disrupture, — appear to
me the most essential, and, as far as history is concerned, the
most significant points in the civil condition of the aboriginal
population of America."
It may be said that these features of the Indian character
are common to all mankind in the savage state : this is gen-
erally true ; but in the American race they exist in a degree
which will fairly challenge a comparison with similar traits
in any existing people ; and if we consider also their habitual
indolence and improvidence, their indifference to private prop-
erty, and the vague simplicity of their religious observances, —
which, for the most part, are devoid of the specious aid of
idolatry, — we must admit them to possess a peculiar and
eccentric moral constitution.
Aboriginal Race of America. 197
If we turn now to the demi-civilized nations, we find the
dawn of refinement coupled with those barbarous usages
which characterize the Indian in his savage state. We see
the Mexicans, hke the later Romans, encouraging the most
bloody and cruel rites, and these too in tiie name of religion,
in order to inculcate hatred of their enemies, familiarity with
danger and contempt of death ; and the moral effect of this
system is manifest in their valorous though unsuccessful re-
sistance to their Spanish conquerors.
Among the Peruvians, however, the case was different.
The inhabitants had been subjugated to the Incas by a com-
bined moral and physical influence. The Inca family were
looked upon as beings of divine origin. They assumed to be
the messengers of heaven, bearing rewards for the good, and
punishment for the disobedient, conjoined with the arts of
peace and various social institutions. History bears ample
testimony that these specious pretences were employed first to
captivate the fancy and then to enslave the man. The famil-
iar adage that '-knowledge is power," was as well understood
by them as by us : learning was artfully restricted to a privi-
leged class ; and the genius of the few soon controled the en-
ergies of the many. Thus the policy of the Incas inculca-
ted in their subjects an abject obedience which knew no
limit. They endeavored to eradicate the feeling of individ-
uality ; or in other words to unite the minds of the plebeian
multitude in a common will which was that of their master.
Thus when Pizarro made his first attack on the defenceless
Peruvians in the presence of their Inca, the latter was borne
in a throne on the shoulders of four men ; and we are told by
Herrera that while the Spaniards spared the Sovereign, they
aimed their deadly blows at his bearers : these, however,
never shrunk from their sacred trust ; but when one of their
number fell, another immediately took his place ; and the his-
torian declares that if the whole day had been spent in kill-
ing them, others would still have came forward to the passive
support of their master. In fact what has been called the
paternal government of the Incas was strictly such ; for their
subjects were children, who neither thought nor acted except
198 Distinctive Characteristics of the
at the dictation of another. Tiius it was that a people whose
moral impulses are known to have differed in Uttle or nothing
from those of the barharous tribes, were reduced, partly by
persuasion, partly by force, to a state of effeminate vassalage
not unlike that of the modern Hindoos. Like the latter, too,
they made good soldiers in their native wars, not from any
principle of valour, but from the sentiment of passive obedience
to their superiors ; and hence when they saw their monarch
bound and imprisoned by the Spaniards, their conventional
courage at once forsook them ; and we behold the singular
spectacle of an entire nation prostrated at a blow, like a
strong man whose energies yield to a seemingly trivial but
rankling wound.
After the Inca power was destroyed, however, the dormant
spirit of the people was again aroused in all the moral vehe-
mence of their race, and the gentle and unoffending Peruvian
was transformed into the wily aud merciless savage. Every
one is familiar with the sequel. Resistance was too late to
be availing, and the fetters to which they had confidingly
submitted were soon riveted forever.
As we have already observed, the Incas depressed the
moral energies of their subjects in order to secure their own
power. This they effected by inculcating the arts of peace,
prohibiting human sacrifices, and in a great measure avoiding
capital punishments ; and blood was seldom spilt excepting on
the subjugation of warlike and refractory tribes. In these
instances, however, the native ferocity of their race broke
forth even in the bosom of the Incas ; for we are told by
Garcilaso, the descendant and apologist of the Peruvian kings,
that some of their wars were absolutely exterminating ; and
among other examples he mentions that of the Inca Yupan-
qui against the province of Collao, in which whole districts
were so completely depopulated that they had subsequently to
be colonized from other parts of the empire : and in another
instance the same unsparing despot destroyed twenty thou-
sand Caranques, whose bodies he ordered to be thrown into an
adjacent lake, which yet bears the name of the Sea of Blood.
In like manner when Atahualpa contested the dominion with
Aboriginal Race of America. 199
Guascar, he caused the latter, together witli thirty of his
brothers, to be put to death in cold blood, that nothing might
impede his progress to the throne.
We have thus endeavored to shew that the same moral
traits characterize all the aboriginal nations of this continent,
from the humanized Peruvian to the rudest savaee of the
Brazilian forest.
3. Intellectual Faculties. It has often been remarked that
the intellectual faculties are distributed with surprising equal-
ity among individuals of the same race who have been simi-
larly educated, and subjected to the same moral and other
influences : yet even among these, as in the physical man, we
see the strong and the weak, with numberless intermediate
gradations. This equality is infinitely more obvious in sav-
age than in civilized communities, simply because in the
former the condition of life is more equal ; whence it hap-
pens that in contrast to a single master mind, the plebeian
multitude are content to live and die in their primitive igno-
rance.
This truth is obvious at every step of the present investi-
gation ; for of the numberless hordes which have inhabited
the American continent, a fractional portion only has left any
trace of refinement. I venture here to repeat my matured
conviction that as a race they are decidedly inferior to the
Mongolian stock. They are not only averse to the restraints
of education, but seem for the most part incapable of a con-
tinued process of reasoning on abstract subjects. Their minds
seize with avidity on simple truths, while they reject what-
ever requires investigation or analysis. Their proximity for
more than two centuries to European communities, has
scarcely effected an appreciable change in their manner of
life ; and as to their social condition, they are probably in
most respects the same as at the primitive epoch of their ex-
istence. They have made no improvement in the construc-
tion of their dwellings, except when directed by Europeans
who have become domiciliated among them ; for the Indian
cabin or the Indian tent, from Terra del Fuego to the river
200 Distinctive Characteristics of the
St. Lawrence, is perhaps the humblest contrivance ever de-
vised by man to screen himself from the elements. Nor is
their mechanical ingenuity more conspicuous in the construc-
tion of their boats ; for these, as we shall endeavor to show
in the sequel, have rarely been improved beyond the first rude
conception. Their imitative faculty is of a very humble
grade, nor have they any predilection for the arts or scien-
ces. The long annals of missionary labor and private bene-
faction, present few exceptions to this cheerless picture, which
is sustained by the testimony of nearly all practical observers.
Even in those instances in which the Indians have received
the benefits of education, and remained for years in civilized
society, they lose little or none of the innate love of their na-
tional usages, which they almost invariably resume when left
to choose for themselves.
Such is the intellectual poverty of the barbarous tribes ;
but contrasted with these, like an oasis in the desert, are the
demi-civilized nations of the new world ; a people whose at-
tainments in the arts and sciences are a riddle in the history of
the human mind. The Peruvians in the south, the Mexicans
in the north, and the Muyscas of Bogota between the two,
formed these contemporary centres of civilization, each inde-
pendent of the other, and each equally skirted by wild and
savage hordes. The mind dwells with surprise and admira-
tion on their cyclopean structures, which often rival those of
Egypt in magnitude ; — on their temples, which embrace al-
most every principle in architecture except the arch alone ; —
and on their statues and bas-reliefs which, notwithstanding
some conventional imperfections, are far above the rudimen-
tary state of the arts.*
• I cannot omit the present occasion to express my admiration of the recent
discoveries of Mr. Stephens among the ruined citifis of Central America. The
spirit, ability and success vvliich cluiraclerize tiieso investigations are an honor
to that gentleman and to his country ; and ihey will probiibly tend more than
the labors of any other person to unravnl the mysteries of American Archseol-
ogy. Similar in design to these are the researches of my distinguished friend
the Chevalier Freidrichthal, the results of whose labors, though not yet given
to the world, are replete with facts of the utmost importance to the present
inquiry.
Aboriginal Race of America. 201
I have elsewhere ventured to designate these demi-civihzed
nations by the collective name of the Toltecan Family : for
although the Mexican annals date their civilization from a
period long antecedent to the appearance of the Toltecas, yet
the latter seem to have cultivated the arts and sciences to a
degree unknown to their predecessors. Besides, the various
nations which at different times invaded and possessed them-
selves of Mexico, were characterized by the same fundamen-
tal language and the same physical traits, together with a
strong analogy in their social institutions : and as the appear-
ance of the Incas in Peru was nearly simultaneous with the
dispersion of the Toltecas, in the year 1050 of our era, there
is reasonable ground for the conjecture that the Mexicans and
Peruvians were branches of the genuine Toltecan stock.
We have alluded to a civilization antecedent to the appearance
of the Incas, and which had already passed away when they
assumed the government of the country. There are tradi-
tional and monumental evidences of this fact which can leave
no doubt on the mind, although of its date we can form no
just conception. It may have even preceded the Christian
era, nor do we know of any positive reasons to the contrary.
Chronology may be called the crutch of history ; but with all
its imperfections it would be invaluable here, where no clue
remains to unravel those mysterious records which excite our
research but constantly elude our scrutiny. We may be per-
mitted, however, to repeat what is all-important to the present
inquiry, that these Ancient Peruvians were the progenitors of
the existing Aymara tribes of Peru, while these last are iden-
tified in every particular with the people of the great Inca
race. AH the monuments which these various nations have
left behind them, over a space of three thousand miles, go
also to prove a common origin, because, notwithstanding some
minor differences, certain leading features pen^ade and charac-
terize them all.
Whether the hive of the civilized nations was, as some
suppose, in the fabled region of Aztlan in the north, or wheth-
er, as the learned Cabrera has endeavored to shew, their na-
tive scats were in Chiapas and Guatimala, we may not stoj
26
202 Distinctive Characteristics of the
to inquire ; but to them, and to them alone, we trace the
monohthic gateways of Peru, the sculptures of Bogota, the
ruined temples and pyramids of Mexico and the mounds and
fortifications of the valley of the Mississippi.
Such was the Toltecan Family ; and it will now be in-
quired how it happens that so great a disparity should have
existed in the intellectual character of the American nations^
if they are all derived from a common stock, or in other
words belong to the same race ? How are we to reconcile
the civilization of the one with the barbarism of the other ?
It is this question which has so much puzzled the philosophers
of the past three centuries, and led them, in the face of facts,
to insist on a plurality of races. We grant the seeming
anomaly ; but however much it is opposed to general rule, it
is not without ample analogies among the people of the old
world. No stronger example need be adduced than that
which presents itself in the great Arabian family ; for the
Saracens who established their kingdom in Spain, whose his-
tory is replete with romance and refinement, whose colleges
were the centres of genius and learning for several centuries,
and whose arts and sciences have been blended with those of
every subsequent age ; — these very Saracens belong not only
to the same race but to the same family with the Bedouins of
the desert ; those intractable barbarians who scorn all re-
straints which are not imposed by their own chief, and whose
immemorial laws forbid them to sow corn, to plant fruit trees
or to build houses, in order tliat nothing may conflict with
those roving and predatory habits which have continued unal-
tered through a period of three thousand years.
Other examples perhaps not less forcible, might be adduced
in the families of the Mongolian race ; but without extending
the comparison, or attempting to investigate this singular in-
tellectual disparity, we shall, for the present, at least, content
ourselves with the facts as we find them. It is important,
however, to remark, that these civilized states do not stand
isolated from their barbarous neighbors ; on the contrary
they merge gradually into each other, so that some nations
are with difficulty classed with either division, and rather
Aboriginal Race of America. 203
form an intermediate link between the two. Such are the
AraucanianSj whose language and customs, and even whose
arts, prove their direct affiliation with the Peruvians, although
they far surpass the latter in sagacity and courage, at the
same time that their social institutions present many features
of intractable barbarism. So also the Aztec rulers of Mexi-
co at the period of the Spanish invasion, exhibit, with their
bloody sacrifices and multiform idolatry, a strong contrast to
the gentler spirit of the Toltecas who preceded them, and
whose arts and ingenuity they had usurped. Still later in this
intermediate series were the Natchez tribes of the Mississippi,
who retained some traces of the refinement of their Mexican
progenitoi-s, mingled with many of the rudest traits of savage
life. It is thus that we can yet trace all the gradations, link
by link, which connect these extremes together, showing
that although the civilization of these nations is fast becom-
ing obsolete, although their arts and sciences have passed away
with a former generation, still the people remain in all other
respects unchanged, although a variety of causes has long
been urging them onward to deep degradation and rapid ex-
tinction. Strange as these intellectual revolutions may seem,
we venture to assert that, all circumstances being considered,
they are not greater than those which have taken place be-
tween the ancient and modern Greeks. If we had not incon-
testable evidence to prove the fact, who would believe that the
ancestors of the Greeks of the present day were the very
people who gave glory to the Age of Pericles !
It may still be insisted that the religion and the arts of the
American nations point to Asia and Egypt ; but it is obvious,
as Humboldt and others have remarked, that these resemblan-
ces may have arisen from similar wants and impulses, acting
on nations in many respects similarly circumstanced. '■'■ It
would indeed be not only singular but wonderful and unac-
countable," observes Dr. Caldwell, " if tribes and nations of
men, possessed of similar attributes of mind and body, re-
siding in similar climates and situations, iniluenced by simi-
lar states of society, and obliged to support themselves by
similaj means, in similar pursuits, — it would form a problem
204 Distinctive Characteristics of the
altogether inexplicable if nations thus situated did not con-
tract habits and usages, and, instinctively modes of life and
action, possessing towards each other many striking resem-
blances." Here also we may draw an illustration from the
old world ; for, notwithstanding the comparative proximity of
the Hindoos and Egyptians, and the evident analogies in their
architecture, mythology and social institutions, there is now
little reason to believe them cognate nations ; and the resem-
blances to which we have adverted have probably arisen from
mutual intercourse, independent of lineal affiliation. And so
with the nations of America. The casual appearance of ship-
wrecked strangers would satisfactorily explain any sameness
in the arts and usages of the one and the other, as well as
those words which are often quoted in evidence of a com-
mon origin of language, but which are so few in number as
to bo readily accounted for on the foregoing principle.
The entire number of common words is said to be one
hundred and four between the American languages and those
of Asia and Australia ; fortythree with those of Europe ; and
forty with those of Africa, making a total of one hundred and
eightyseven words. But taking into account the mere coinci-
dence by which some of these analogies may be reasonably
explained, I would inquire, in the language of an ingenious
author, whether these facts are sufficient to prove a connexion
between four hundred dialects of America and the various
languages of the old world ?
Even so late as the year 1833, a Japanese junk was wrecked
on the northwest coast of America, and several of the crew
escaped unhurt to the shore ; and I have myself seen
some porcelain vessels which were saved on that occasion*
Such casualties may have occurred in the early periods of
American history ; and it requires no effort of the imagination
to conceive the influence these persons might have exerted,
in various respects, had they been introduced to the ancient
courts of Peru and Mexico. They might have contributed
something to extend or at least to modify the arts and sciences
of the people among whom they were thrown, and have
added a few words to the national language.
Ahorigijial Race of America. 205
I am informed by my friend Mr. Townsend, who passed
several months among the tribes of the Cokimbia river, that
the Indians there have ah-eady adopted from the Canadian
traders several French words, which they use with as much
freedom as if they belonged to their own vocabulary.
It follows of course from the preceding remarks that we
consider the American race to present the two extremes of
intellectual character ; the one capable of a certain degree of
civihzation and refinement, independent of extraneous aids ;
the other exhibiting an abasement which puts all mental cul-
ture at defiance. The one composed, as it were, of a hand-
ful of people whose superiority and consequent acquisitions
have made them the prey of covetous destroyers ; the other
a vast multitude of savage tribes whose very barbarism is
working: their destruction from within and without. The
links that connect them partake of the fate of the extremes
themselves ; and extinction appears to be the unhappy, but
fast approaching doom of them all.
4. Maritime Enterprise. — One of the most characteristic
traits of all civilized and many barbarous communities, is the
progress of maritime adventure. The Caucasian nations of
every age present a striking illustration of this fact : their
sails are spread on every ocean, and the fabled voyage of the
Argonauts is but a type of their achievements from remote
antiquity to the present time. Hence their undisputed do-
minion of the sea, and their successful colonization of every
quarter of the globe. The Mongolians and Malays, though
active and predatory, and proverbially aquatic in their habits,
are deficient in that mechanical invention which depends on
a knowledge of mathematical principles ; while they seem
also incapable of those mental combinations which are re-
quisite to a perfect acquaintance with naval tactics. The
Negro, whose observant and imitative powers enable him to
acquire with ease the details of seamansliip, readily becomes
a mariner, but rarely a commander ; and history is silent on
the nautical prowess of his race. Far behind all these is the
man of America. Savage or civilized, the sea for him has
206 Distinctive Characteristics of the
had few charms, and his navigation has been almost exclu-
sively restricted to lakes and rivers. A canoe excavated from
a single log, was the principal vessel in use in the new world
at the period of its discovery. Even the predatory Charibs,
who were originally derived from the forests of Guayana,
possessed no other boat than this simple contrivance, in which
they seldom ventured out of sight of land ; and never ex-
cepting in the tranquil periods of the tropical seas, when they
sailed from shore to shore, the terror of the feebler natives of
the surrounding islands. The canoes of the Arouacs of Cuba
were not more ingeniously contrived than those of the ruder
Charibs ; which is the more surprising since their island was
the centre of a great archipelago, and their local position,
therefore, in all respects calculated to develope any latent
nautical propensities. When Cortez approached in his ships
the Mexican harbor of Tobasco, he was astonished to find
even there, the sea-port, as it were, of a mighty empire, the
same primitive model in tlie many vessels that skimmed the
sea before him. Let us follow this conqueror to the imperial
city itself, surrounded by lakes, and possessed of warlike
defences superior to those of any other American people. The
Spanish commander, foreseeing that to possess the lake would
be to hold the keys of the city, had fifteen brigantines built
at Tlascala ; and these being subsequently taken to pieces,
were borne on men's shoulders to the lake of Mexico, and
there re-constructed and launched. The war thus com-
menced as a naval contest ; and the Spanish historians, while
they eulogize the valour of the Mexicans, are constrained to
admit the utter futility of their aquatic defences : for although
the subjects of Montezuma, knowing and anticipating the
nature of the attack, came forth from the city in several
thousand boats, these were so feebly constructed, and man-
aged with so little dexterity, that in a few hours the^^ were
all destroyed, dispersed or taken by the enemy.
Turning from the Mexicans, we naturally look to the Pe-
ruvians for some further advances in nautical skill ; but
although their country was comparatively a narrow strip of
land with an extended frontier on the ocean, we find even
Aboriginal Race of America. 207
here the same primitive vessels and the same timid naviga-
tors. It is indeed questionable whether they ever designedly-
lost sight of land, nor does it appear that they made the sea
subservient to their conquests. These were uniformly pros-
ecuted by land, excepting perhaps those of the Incas, in their
efforts to subdue the fierce islanders of Titicaca ; but even
the partial pen of Garcilaso limits all these inventions to log
canoes and rafts of reeds ; nor does it appear that the inge-
nuity of these people, so abundantly displayed on many other
occasions, had ever added an improvement to the primeval
germ of navigation.
Nor are those tribes which depend almost wholly on fish
for their daily subsistence, much better provided than the
others. The Chenouks and other nations on the western
coast of America, have boats hewn with comparative in-
genuity from a single plank, and compared to a butcher's tray ;
but in these frail vessels they keep cautiously within sight of
land, and never venture on the Avater unless the weather is
favourable to their enterprise. It is to be observed, however,
that when the Indians are compelled to carry their boats
across portages from river to river, they construct them of
birch bark, and with a degree of ingenuity and adaptation
much above their usual resources. Thus boats that would
carr}?- nine men do not weigh over sixty pounds, and are there-
fore conveyed with ease to considerable distances. This is
almost the only deviation from the log canoe, and is equally
characteristic ; for it is common among the interior Indians of
both North and South America, and was noticed by De Solis
in the Mexican provinces.
Inferior in these respects to the other tribes are the Fue-
gians ; a people whom perpetual exposure and privation, and
the influence of an inhospitable climate have reduced to a
feeble intelligence, — the moral childhood of their race. Not
even the stimulus of necessity has been able to excite that
ingenuity which would so amply provide for all their wants ;
and they starve amid the abundant stores of the ocean because
they possess no adequate means for obtaining them. The
Falkland and Malouine islands, in but fifty degrees of South
208 Distinctive Characteristics of the
latitude, South Georgia, New South Shetland, and some
smaller islands in neaily the same parallel, were at their dis-
covery, entirely uninhabited ; nor is there any evidence of
their ever having been visited by any American tribe. Yet
they possess seals and other marine animals in vast numbers,
and in these and all other respects appear to be not less pro-
ductive than the region inhabited by the Eskimaux.
It is generally supposed that nautical enterprise results from
the necessity of the case, in nations proximate to, or surround-
ed by the sea. We have seen, hovv^ever, that the natives of
the islands of the Gulf of Mexico were exceptions to the
rule ; and we find another not less remarkable in the archi-
pelago of Chiloe, on the coast of Chili. These islands are
seen from the shore, and have a large Indian population which
depends for subsistence on fish taken from the surrounding
ocean ; yet even so late as the close of the past century, after
more than two hundred years of communication with the
Spaniards, their boats appear not to have been the least im-
proved from their original model. The padre Gonzalez de
Agueros, who resided many years among these islanders, de-
scribes their canoes as composed of five or six boards nar-
rowed at the ends and lashed together with cords, the seams
being filled with moss. They have sails, but neither keel
nor deck ; and in these frail and primitive vessels the inhabi-
tants commit themselves to a tempestuous sea in search of
their daily food. The same miserable vessels are found in
exclusive use in the yet more southern archipelago of Guai-
tecas, in which a sparse population is distributed over eight
hundred islands, and depends solely on the sea for subsistence.
The mechanical ingenuity of these people, therefore, is not
greater than that of the other Indians ; but from constant
practice with their wretched boats, they have acquired a dex-
terity in the use of them unknown to any other tribe, and
in some instances, under the direction of the Spaniards, have
become comparatively good sailors.
De Azara mentions a curious fact in illustration of the pres-
ent inquiry. He declares that when his countrymen discov-
ered the Rio de la Plata, they found iis shores inhabited by
Aboriginal Race of America. 209
two distinct Indian nations, the^Charruas on the north, and
the Patagonians on the south ; yet strange to say, these rest-
less people had never communicated with each other for war
or for peace, for good or for evil, because they had neither
boats or canoes in which to cross the river.
The Indian is not defective in courage even on the water ;
but he lacks invention to construct better vessels, and tact to
manage them. When he has been compelled to defend him-
self in his frail canoe, he has done so with the indomitable
spirit of his race ; yet with all their love of war and strata-
gem, I cannot find any account of a naval combat in which
Europeans have borne no part.
The Payaguas Indians at one period took revenge on the
Spaniards by infesting the rivers of Paraguay, in canoes
which they managed with much adroitness ; and darting from
their lurking places, they intercepted the trading vessels going
to and from Buenos Ayres, robbing them of their goods, and
destroying their crews without mercy. Such was their suc-
cess in these river piracies that it required yea.s of war and
stratagem on the part of the Spaniards to subdue them.
The only example of a naval contest that I have met with,
is described by Dobrizhoffer, to have taken place between the
so-called Mamalukes of St. Paulo, in Brazil, and their enemies
the Guaranies. The former were a banditti derived from the
intermarriage of the dregs of Europeans of all nations with
the surrounding Indians ; and assisted by two thousand of
their native allies, they came forth to battle in three hundred
boats. The Guaranies, on the other hand, had five ships
armed with cannon. But it is obvious from this statement,
that European vessels and European tactics gave the battle all
its importance. It took place on the river Mborore, in Para-
guay ; but after all, both parties finding themselves out of
their element on the water, at length abandoned their vessels
by mutual agreement, and fought to desperation on shore.
It is said of the inhabitants of New Holland, that their only
substitute for a boat is a short and solid log, on which they
place themselves astride, and thus venture upon the water.
Even this, the humblest of all human contrivances, was in
S7
210 Distinctive Characteristics of the
use among the Indians of the Bay of Honduras, who had
learned to balance themselves so dexterously standing upon a
log, as to be able in this position to pursue their customary
occupation of fishing in the adjacent sea.
In fine, his long contact with European arts, has furnished
the Indian with no additional means of contending with the
watery element ; and his log canoe and boat of birch bark,
are precisely the same as at the landing of Columbus.
5. Majiner of Interment. Veneration for the dead is a
sentiment natural to man, whether civilized or savage : but
the manner of expressing it, and of performing the rites of
sepulture, differ widely in different nations. No oflfence excites
greater exasperation in the breast of the Indian than the vio-
lation of the graves of his people ; and he has even been
known to disinter the bones of his ancestors, and bear them
with him to a great distance, when circumstances have com-
pelled him to make a permanent change of residence.
But the manner of inhumation is so different from that
practised by the rest of mankind, and at the same time so
prevalent among the American natives, as to constitute another
means of identifying them as parts of a single and peculiar
race. This practice consists in burying the dead in the sit-
ting posture ; the legs being flexed against the abdomen, the
arms also bent, and the chin supported on the palms of the
hands. The natives of Patagonia, Brazil and Guayana ; the
insular and other Charibs, the Florida tribes, the great chain
of Lenape nations, the inhabitants of both sides of the Rocky
mountains, and those also of Canada and the vast Northwest-
ern region, all conform, with occasional exceptions, to this
conventional rite. So also with the demi-civilized commu-
nities from the most distant epochs ; for the ancient Peruvi-
ans, to whom we have already so frequently referred, pos-
sessed this singular usage, as is verified by their numberless
remains in the sepulchres of Titicaca. They did not, hoAV-
ever, bury their dead, but placed them on the floors of their
tombs, seated, and sowed up in sacks. The later Peruvians
of the Inca race followed the same custom, sometimes inhu-
Aboriginal Race of America. 211
ming the body, at others placing it in a tower above ground.
Garcilaso de la Yega informs us, that in the year 1560 he saw
five embalmed bodies of the royal family, all of whom were
seated in the Indian manner, with their hands crossed upon
the breast, and their heads bent forward. So also the Mexi-
cans from the most ancient time had adopted the same usage,
which was equally the privilege of the king and his people.
The most remarkable exception to the practice in question, is
that in which the body is dissected before interment, the
bones alone being deposited in the earth. This extraordinary
rite has prevailed among various tribes from the southern to the
northern extremity of their range, in Patagonia, Brazil, Flor-
ida and Missouri, and indeed in many intervening localities ;
but even in these instances the bones are often retained in
their relative position by preserving the ligaments, and then
interred in the attitude of a person seated. An example
among very many others is recorded by the Baron Humboldt,
in his visit to a cavern-cemetery of the Atures Indians, at the
sources of the Orinoco ; wherein he found hundreds of skele-
tons preserved each in a separate basket, the bones being held
together by their natural connections, and the whole disposed
in the conventional posture of which we are speaking.
I am well aware that this practice has been noticed by
some navigators among the Polynesian islands ; the instances,
however, appear so few as rather to form exceptions to the
rule, like those of the Nassamones of northern Africa : but I
have sought for it in vain among the continental Asiatics, who,
if they ever possessed it, would have yet preserved it among
some at least of their numberless tribes.
After this rapid view of the principal leading characteris-
tics of the American race, let us now briefly inquire whether
they denote an exotic origin ; or whether there is not internal
evidence that this race is as strictly aboriginal to America as
the Mongolian is to Asia, or the Negro to Africa.
And first, we turn to the Mongolian race, which, by a
somewhat general consent is admitted to include the Polar
nations, and among them the Eskimaux of our continent. It
is a very prevalent opinion that the latter people, who obvi-
212 Distinctive Characteristics of the
ously belong to the Polar family of Asia, pass insensibly into
the American race, and thus form the connecting link be-
tween the two. But without repeating what has already been
said in reference to the Indian, we may briefly advert, for the
purpose of comparison, to the widely different characteristics
of the Eskimaux. These people are remarkable for a large
and rather elongated head, which is low in front and project-
ing behind ; the great width and flatness of the face is noted
by all travellers : their eyes are small and black, the mouth
small and round, and the nose is so diminutive and depressed,
that on looking at a skull in profile the nasal bones are hardly
seen. Their complexion, moreover, is comparatively fair, and
there is a tendency throughout life to fulness and obesity.
The traveller Hearne, while in company with a tribe of north-
ern Indians, mentions a circumstance which is at least curious,
because it shows the light in which the Eskimaux are regaid-
ed by their proximate neighbors on the south. He was the
unwilling witness of a premeditated and unprovoked massa-
cre of an entire encampment of Eskimaux, men, women, and
children ; and it is curious to remark that the aggressors apolo-
gised for their cruelty not only on the plea of ancient feud,
but by asserting that their unoffending victims were a people
of different nature and origin from themselves, even in respect
to sexual conformation.
The moral character of the Eskimaux differs from that of the
Indian chiefly in the absence of the courage, cunning, cru-
elty and improvidence so habitual in the red man, who, in turn,
is inferior in mechanical ingenuity, and above all in aquatic
exercises. The Eskimau, notwithstanding the intense cold
of his climate, has been called an amphibious animal, so read-
ily and equally does ho adapt himself to the land or water.
His boat is an evidence of mechanical skill, and the adroit
manner in which he manages it is a proverb among mariners.
The women are not less expert and enterprising than the
men : each possesses a boat of peculiar and distinctive con-
struction ; and Crantz informs us that children of the tender
age of seven or eight years commence the unassisted man-
agement of their little vessels.
Aboriginal Race of America. 213
How strongly do these and other traits which might be
enumerated, contrast with those of the Indian, and enforce an
ethnographic dissimilarity which is confirmed at every step
of the investigation !
Some writers, however, think they detect in the Fuegian
a being whose similar physical condition has produced in him
all the characteristics of the Eskimau ; but we confidently
assert that the latter is vastly superior both in his exterior
organization and mental aptitude. In truth the two may be
readily contrasted but not easily compared. The Fuegian
bears a coarse but striking resemblance to the race to which
he belongs, and every feature of his character assists in fixing
his identity. The extremes of cold, with their many attend-
ing privations, by brutifying the features and distorting the
expression of the face, reduce man to a mere caricature, a
repulsive perversion of his original type. Compare the Mon-
gols of Central Asia and China, with the Polar nations of
Siberia. Compare also the Hottentot with the contiguous
black tribes on the north ; the Tasmanian negro with the
proper New Hollanders ; and lastly, the wretched Fuegian
with the Indian beyond the Magellanic strait ; and we find in
every instance how much more the man of a cold and inhos-
pitable clime is degraded, physically and intellectually, than
his more fortunate but affiliated neighbor. The operation of
these perverting causes through successive ages of time, has
obscured but not obliterated those lineaments which, however
modified, point to an aboriginal stock.
Without attempting to enter the fathomless depths of phi-
lology, I am bound to advert to the opinion of Mr. Gallatin,
that all the nations from Cape Horn to the iVrctic Ocean,
have languages which possess " a distinct character common
to all, and apparently differing from those of the other conti-
nent with which we are acquainted ;" an analogy, moreover,
which is not of an indefinite kind, but consists for the most
part in peculiar conjugational modes of modifying the verbs, by
the insertion of syllables. It has been insisted by some writers
that this analogy proves the cognate relation of the Eskimaux
and Indians. This, however, is a mere postulate ; for from
214 Distinctive Characteristics of the
the evidence already adduced in respect to the ethnographic
difference between these people, we have a right to infer that
the resemblance in their respective languages has not been
derived by the greater from the lesser source, — not by the
Americans from the Eskimaux, but the reverse : for the Asiat-
ics having arrived at various and distant periods^ and in small
parties, would naturally, if not unavoidably, adopt more or less
of the language of the people among whom they settled, until
their own dialects finally merged in those of the Chepewyan
and other Indians who bound them on the south.
The Eskimaux, it may be remarked, at the present time
extend much further south, and are much more numerous on
the western than on the eastern coast of America, being found
as low down as Mount St. Elias : south of which, contrary to
what is observed on the opposite side of the continent, they
become more or less blended with the Indian tribes, and have
imparted to the latter some portion of their mechanical inge-
nuity. This difference in the extent and influence of the
western and eastern Eskimaux, is explained by the proximity
of the former to Asia ; and a redundant population has even
forced some of them back to the parent hive, whither they
have carried a dialect derived, from the cognate tribes of Amer-
ica. Such are the Tsutchchi, who thus form a link between
the Polar nations of the two continents.
It is a common opinion, also, that America has been peo-
pled by the proper Mongols of central and eastern Asia ; and
volumes have been written on supposed affinities, physical,
moral and intellectual, to sustain this hypothesis. We have
already glanced at the Mongolian features, as seen, though
rudely and extravagantly developed, in the Polar nations ; but
there are some characters so prevalent as to pervade all the
ramifications of the great Mongolian stock, from the repulsive
Calmuck to the polished and more delicately featured Chi-
nese. These are the small, depressed, and seemingly broken
nose ; the oblique position of the eye, which is drawn up at
the external angle ; the great width between the cheek bones,
which are not only high but expanded laterally ; the arched
and linear eyebrow ; and lastly, the complexion, which is
Aboriginal Race of America. 215
invariably some shade of yellow or olive, and almost equally
distant from the fair tint of the European and the red hue of
the Indian. Without attempting a detailed comparison, we
may briefly observe that the Mongolian, in his various local-
ities, is distinguished for his imitative powers and mechanical
ingenuity, and above all for his nautical skill, in which, as we
have suggested, he holds a place next to the nations of the
Caucasian race. In fine, we are constrained to believe that
there is no more resemblance between the Indian and the Mon-
gol in respect to arts, architecture, mental features and social
usages, than exists between any other two distinct races of
mankind. Mr. Ranking has written an elaborate treatise to
prove that the Mongols, led by a descendant of Genghis
Khan, conquered Peru and Mexico in the thirteenth century ;
but in the whole range of English literature there cannot be
found a work more replete with distorted facts and illogical
reasoning. The author begins by the singular assertion that
" when Cuzco was founded by Manco Capac, none of the civ-
ilization introduced by the Peruvians and Mexicans was in
existence ;" thus overlooking the cultivated tribes who pre-
ceded the Inca family, and disregarding also the various demi-
civilized nations which successively follow^ed each other in
Mexico, before that country fell under the rule of the Aztecs.
Mr. Ranking introduces the Mongols in large ships, with all
the appliances of war, not even excepting elephants ; and in
order that the Tartar general may correspond to Manco Ca-
pac, he is made to enter Peru by the Lake Titicaca, upwards
of an hundred miles from the sea. Such statements may
seem too absurd for sober discussion ; but they are not more
so than various other subterfuges which have been resorted to
in explanation of the precise manner in which the new world
has been peopled from the old.
But there is not a shadow of evidence that the Mongols
ever reached America in ships excepting by mere accident ;
and therefore their number must have always been too small,
and too badly provided, to have dreamt of conquest in a coun-
try which has had a population of millions from immemorial
time.
216 Distinctive Characteristics of the
There is a third view of this question which remains to be
noticed ; for, allowing that the Eskimaux and the cognate
Polar nations are not the progenitors of the American race ;
and admitting also that the Mongols of central Asia could
never have arrived in any requisite number by a direct voyage
from one continent to the other, yet it is supposed by many
learned men that these Mongols could have reached America
by slow journeys from their own distant country ; and that
their hieroglyphic charts delineate many of the incidents of
their journey : but there is no positive evidence in regard to
direction and localities, although these, by a very general
consent, are placed in the north and northwest. Cabrera, on
the contrary, after the most patient research, aided by unusual
facilities for investigation, traces the primal seat of the civil-
ized nations of America to southern Mexico, where the ruined
cities of Copan, Uxmal and Palenque, point to an epoch seem-
ingly much more remote than any antiquities contained in the
present metropolis of that country.
If we conventionally adopt the more prevalent opinion, and
trace the Aztecs back to California or the strait, we have after
all but a vague tradition of a handful of persons, who, for all
we know to the contrary, may have been as indigenous to
America as any people in it. The aborigines of this conti-
nent have always been of nomadic and migratory habits ; a
fact which is amply illustrated in the traditional history of
Mexico itself. So also with the barbarous tribes ; for the Le-
nape, the Florida Indians, the Iroquois, the insular Charibs and
many others, were intruding nations, who, driven by want, or
impelled by an innate and restless activity, had deserted their
own possessions to seize upon others which did not belong to
them. These nations, like their more polished neighbors,
were in the constant practice of recording the events of their
battles and hunting excursions by hieroglyphic symbols,
made, according to circumstances, on trees, skins or rocks ;
and this rude but expressive language of signs, has been justly
regarded as the origin of the picture-writing of the Mexicans.
*' The difference between them," observes Dr. Coates, '^ does
not appear greater than must necessarily exist between igno-
Aboriginal Race of America. 217
rant warriors and hunters in a simple form of society, and
those of the members of a complicated state, possessed of
property, and even, as described by Clavigero, of a species of
science and literature."
This gradation of the ruder into the more perfect art of
hieroglyphic writing, not only affords an additional argument
for the unity of origin of the American nations, but also con-
stitutes another proof of the distinctness of their race ; for
this picture-writing, even in its most elaborate forms, bears no
other than the most general resemblance to any exotic hiero-
glyphics, nor indeed has a real equivalent been detected be-
tween them. We may therefore be permitted to repeat our
conviction that the annals of the Mexicans bear no indispu-
table evidence of immigration from Asia ; but, on the other
hand, that they are susceptible of as many different interpre-
tations as there are theories to be supported.
It is remarked by Dr. Coates, that the Mongolian theory,
which we are now considering, is objectionable on account of
its vastness. " To derive the population of the whole of the
American continent from the northwestern angle, requires the
supposition of a continued chain of colonies during a long
succession of ages, acquiring and using an immense diversity
of languages, and pursuing each other along the huge ridge
of the great American Andes, from Prince William's Sound
in the far north, to the extremity of Terra del Fuego, a dis-
tance of one hundred and fifteen degrees of latitude, or of
eight thousand miles. This long succession of occurrences
is absolutely necessary to the theory ; which is tlius liable to
the difficulty of requiiing two extensive hypotheses at once.
Several hundred colonies must be imagined to have issued
from the same point, all completely isolated, as their languages
abundantly show, unconnected by peaceful intercourse, but
urging each other by war and the destruction of the game,
throughout a third part of the circumference of the globe.
" The traces of such a series of human waves would be
naturally looked for in a tendency to advance population in
the north, from which they emanated, and where the pressure
must have been greatest and the colonization of longest dura-
28
218 Distinctive Characteristics of the
tion. Nothing like this is observed ; the population of South
America, and of Darien, Guatimala and Mexico, being much
greater in proportion than that of any country farther north.
The marks of early civilization, too, one of the most impor-
tant proofs of long residence in a fixed spot, are all, as in the
older world, in favor of the tropical climates."*
We may further inquire, how it happens that during the
lapse of more than three hundred years since the discovery of
America, there has not been an authenticated immigration
from Asia ? The long and desolating wars which have driven
whole nations from the central to the northern parts of that con-
tinent, have not supplied a single colony to the New World.
Nay, if such colonization had occurred within a thousand or
two thousand years, would we not now possess more indubi-
table evidences of it in language, customs and the arts ?
We propose in the next place, to make a very few observa-
tions in reference to the idea that America has been peopled
by the Malay race, which, in the ordinary classification, in-
cludes the Malays proper of the Indian Archipelago, and the
Polynesians in all their numberless localities. These people,
however, have so much of the Mongolian character, that nearly
the same objections arise to both. The head of the Malay
proper, is more like that of the Indian, because it not unfre-
quently presents something of the vertical form of the occi-
put ; and the transverse diameter, as measured between the
parietal bones, is also remarkably large. But excepting in
these respects, the osteological developement coincides with
that of the Mongolian ; while the whole category of objec-
tions which we have just urged against the latter people, is
equally valid in respect to the whole Malay race. For inde-
pendently of differences of organization, how great is the
disparity in their arts and social institutions ! So great,
indeed, that to account for it. Dr. Lang, one of the most inge-
nious supporters of the theory, insists on an intellectual
degeneracy, consequent to change of climate and circumstan-
ces. '' It is an easy and natural process," says he, •' for man
•On the Origin of the Indian Population of America. By B H. Coatks,
M. D. 1834.
Aboriginal Race of America. 219
to degenerate in the scale of civilization, as the Asiatics have
evidently done in travelling to the northward and eastward.
He has only to move forward a few hundred miles into the
wilderness, and settle himself at a distance from all civilized
men, and the process will advance with almost incredible
celerity. For, whether he conies in contact with savages
or not, in the dark recesses of the forest, his offspring will
speedily arrive at a state of complete barbarism."
We confess our difficulty in imagining how the Polynesians,
themselves a barbarous people, though possessing some of the
attributes of civilized life, should become savages in the tro-
pical regions of America, wherein the climate must be as
congenial to their constitutions as their own, and the various
other external circumstances are calculated to foster rather
than to depress the energies of a naturally active and intelli-
gent people. But the general prevalence of easterly winds is
adverse to the colonization of America from the islands of the
Pacific ; for the nearest of these islands is one thousand eight
hundred miles from the American coast ; and when we reflect
on the many difficulties which the mere distance opposes to
navigation in small vessels, and the absolute necessity for food
and water for a long period of time, we feel compelled to be-
lieve that America has received very feeble if any accessions
to its population from the Polynesian islands. Such voyages,
if admitted, could only have been accidental ; for it is not to
be supposed that these islanders would have attempted remote
discoveries on the vast Pacific ocean in the very face of the
trade winds ; and a successful issue is among the least proba-
ble of human events.
Even admitting that the Polynesians have accomplished
all that the theory requires, how does it happen that on reach-
ing the continent of America, they should all at once have
relinquished their intuitive fondness for the water, forgotten
the construction of their boats, and become the most timid
and helpless navigators in the world ?
A comparison of languages, moreover, gives no support to
the Polynesian hypothesis ; for all the zeal and ingenuity
which have been devoted to this inquiry, have tended only
to disclose a complpte philological disparity.
220 Distiyictive Characteristics of the
The theories to which we have thus briefly adverted, would
each derive the whole American population from a single
source ; but various others have been hazarded of a much
more complex nature, by which the Indian nations are referred
to a plurality of races, not even excepting the Caucasian. For
example, the Peruvians, Muyscas and Mexicans, are by some
advocates of this system, supposed to be Malays or Polynesians,
and all the savage tribes Mongolians ; whence the civilization
of the one and the barbarism of the other. But we insist
that the origin of these two great divisions must have been
the same, because all their ethnographic characters, not ex-
cepting the construction of their numberless languages, go to
enforce an identity of race.
Another doctrine which has had many disciples, (among
wliom was tlie lale Lord Kingsborough, author of Mexican
Antiquities) teaches that the whole American population is
descended from the Jews, through the ten lost tribes which
were carried away by Salmanazer, King of Assyria. Here
again the differences of physical organization should set this
question at rest foi3ver; but independently of these, can we
suppose that people so tenacious as the Jews, of their litera-
ture, language, and religion, should not have preserved a soli-
tary unequivocal memorial of either among the multitudinous
tribes of this continent, if any direct affihation had ever ex-
isted between them ? In short, we coincide in opinion with
a facetious author who sums up all the evidence of the case
with the conclusion, that '' the Jewish theory cannot be true
for the simple reason that it is impossible."
We feel assured that the same objection bears not less
strongly on every other hypothesis which deduces any portion
of the American nations from a Caucasian source. In order
to solve the probbm of the origin of the monuments of
America, independently of any agency of the aboriginal race,
an opinion has been advanced that they are the work of a
branch of the great Cyclopean family of the old world, known
by the various designations of the Shepherd Kings of Egypt,
the Anakim of Syiia, the Oscans of Etruriaand the Pelasgians
04 Greece. These wandering masons^ as they are also called,
Aboriginal Race of America. 221
are supposed to have passed from Asia into America at a very
early epoch of history, and to have built those more ancient
monuments which are attributed to the Toltecan nation.
This view, supported as it is by some striking resemblances,
and especially in architectural decoration, leaves various im-
portant difficulties entirely unexplained : it necessarily pre-
supposes a great influx of foreigners to account for such nu-
merous and gigantic remains of human ingenuity and effort,
at the same time that no trace of this exotic family can
be detected in the existing Indian population. They and
their arts are equally eradicated : and we can only conceive
of the presence of these migratory strangers in small and
isolated groups, which might have modified the arts of an
antecedent civilization, while they themselves were too few
in number to transmit their lineaments to any aboriginal com-
munity.
Closely allied to this theory, is that of our ingenious coun-
tryman, Mr. Delafield, who derives the demi-civilized nations
of America from " the Cnthites who built the monuments of
Egypt and Indostan." He supposes them to have traversed all
Asia to reach Behring's strait, and thus to have entered Amer-
ica at its northwest angle, whence they made their way by
slow journeys to the central regions of the continent. Our
objections to this theory will be found in what has been
already stated : and we may merely add, that the route by
which the author conducts his pilgrim adventurers, appears to
constitute the least plausible portion of his theory. Mr. Dela-
field supposes the barbarous tribes to be of a different stock,
and refers them to the Mongolians of Asia ; thus adopting the
idea of a plurality of races.
We shall lastly notice an imaginative classification which
separates the aborigines of America into four species of men,
exclusive of the Eskimaux. This curious but unphilosophi-
cal hypothesis has been advanced by Bory de St. Vincent, a
French naturalist of distinction, who considers the civilized
nations to be cognate with the Malays, and designates them
by the collective name of the Neptunian species ; while to
his three remaining species, — the Columbian, the American
222 Distinctive Characteristics , S/*c.
and the Patagonian, he assigns certain vague geographical
hmitSj without estabUshing any distinctive characteristics of
the people themselves. The system is so devoid of founda-
tion in nature, so fanciful in all its details, as hardly to merit
a serious analysis ; and we have introduced it on the present
occasion to illustrate the extravagance and the poverty of
some of the hypotheses which have been resorted to in expla-
nation of the problem before us.
Once for all I repeat my conviction, that the study of
physical conformation alone, excludes every branch of the
Caucasian race from any obvious participation in the peopling
of this continent. If the Egyptians,* Hindoos, Phenicians or
Gauls have ever, by accident or design, planted colonies in
America, these must have been, sooner or later, dispersed and
lost in the waves of a vast indigenous population. Such we
know to have been the fact with the Northmen, whose repeat-
ed, though very partial settlements in the present New Eng-
land States, from the tenth to the thirteenth centuries, are now
matter of history ; yet, in the country itself, they have not
left a single indisputable trace of their sojourn.
In fine, our own conclusion, long ago deduced from a
patient examination of the facts thus briefly and inadequately
stated, is, that the American race is essentially separate and
peculiar, whether we regard it in its physical, its moral, or its
intellectual relations. To us there are no direct or obvious
links between the people of the old world and the new ; for
* With respect to the Egyptians and Hindoos as involved in this question, I
can speak without reservation. Through the kindness of an accomplished
gentleman and scholar, George R. Gliddon, Esq., late United States Consul at
Cairo, I have received ninety heads of Egyptian mummies from the tornb.s of
AbyduS) Thebes and Memphis; and I unhesitatingly declare, that, with a
very few exceptions, which have a mixed character, and resemble the Coptic
form, tiie conformation throughout is that of the Caucasian race. In every
instance in which the hair has been preserved, it is long, soft and curling, and
indeed as silky as that of the most polished Europeans of the present time. I
am now preparing, with the title of Crania JEgyptiaca^ a brief exposition of the
facts connected with these interesting relics of antiquity.
I possess also about thirty crania of the Hindoos, among which there is not
one that could be mistaken for an Indian skull. In fact there is an obvious
contrast between them in all respects excepting the internal capacity, which is
nearly the same in the Hindoo and Peruvian.
Araneides of the United States. 223
even admitting the seeming analogies to which we have
alhided, these are so few in nmnber and evidently so casual
as not to invalidate the main position : and even should it
be hereafter shown, that the arts, sciences and religion of
America, can be traced to an exotic source, I maintain that
the organic characters of the people themselves, through all
their endless ramifications of tribes and nations, prove them to
belong to one and the same race, and that this race is distinct
from all others.
This idea may at first view seem incompatible with the
history of man, as recorded in the Sacred Writings. Such,
however, is not the fact. Where others can see nothing but
chance, we can perceive a wise and obvious design, displayed
in the original adaptation of the several races of men to those
varied circumstances of climate and locality, which, while
congenial to the one, are destructive to the other. The evi-
dences of history and the Egyptian monuments go to prove
that these races were as distinctly stamped three thousand
five hundred years ago as they are now ; and, in fact, that
they are coeval with the primitive dispersion of our species.
Art. XVI.— descriptions AND FIGURES OF THE ARANEI-
DES OF THE UNITED STATES. By Nicholas Marcellus
Hentz, Florence, Ala.
[Continued from page 57.]
Genus. Atypus, Latr. Oletera, Walck.
Characters. Cheliceres large with a fang nearly equal to
their le7igth, articulated downward; rnaxillce tapering up-
ward, insertion of the palpi lateral ; lip concealed ; eyes
eight, subequal, collected in front of the cep halo thorax, two in
the centre, and, on each side of these, there is a cluster ; feet,
4. 1. 2. 3.
Habits. Arajieides sedentary, dwelling in silk tubes placed
in the ground.
•^24 Hentz^s Descriptions of the
Observations. The habits of the animals of this subgenus
are but Httle known, owing to the obscure locations which
they select. They are probably nocturnal.
ATYPUS NIGER.
Description. Deep black ; cephalothorax flattened, horny,
with three depressions ; a white membrane at the base of the
cheliceres. A small species.
Observations. A solitary individual (a male) was found in
June, on newly turned soil, at Northampton, Mass., by the
son of the late Prof W. D. Peck. I am not acquainted
with A. rujipes found by Mr. Milbert, near Philadelphia.
Habitat. Massachusetts.
PI. VIII. Fig. 1. Atypus nigpr. a. Its tropin, h. Its eyes.
Genus. Dysdera. Latr. Walck.
Characters. Cheliceres large, fangs articulated inward ;
'inaxillcB straight, wide at base, narrowed above the insertion
of the palpi, inner edge cut obliquely towards the point ; lip
half as long as the niaxillcB, emarginate at tip ; eyes six,
subequal, four in a line curved towards the base, and one each
side Clearer the anterior edge, but leaving an open space
between them ; feet, first pair longest, the second and fourth
nearly equal, the third shortest.
Habits. Araneides sedentary, dwelling in silken tubes,
under stones or in crevices.
Observations. The large size of the cheliceres, and other
minor characters, show some affinity to Mygale. The only
species here described being made known to me by Dr. T. W.
Harris, I am not acquainted with many facts necessary to give
a good history of this subgenus.
DYSDERA INTERRITA.
Description. Ferruginous ; cephalothorax and trophi
piceous.
Observatio7is. This species was communicated to me by
my excellent friend Dr. T. W. Harris, of Massachusetts, who
Araneides of the United States. 225
sent me the male and the female, also, with a correct sketch of
both sexes. It inhabits that State and was found in cavities
under ground, under rotten wood, &<c., in the month of May.
PI. VIII. Fig. 2. Dysdera interrita. a. Its trophi. h. It? eyes.
Genus. Pylarus. Mihi.
Characters. Chelieeres smcdl, fang very shorty maxillcB
slightly inclined over the lip, long and slightly rounded at
tip ; lip tapering J half as long as the maxillcB ; eyes six,
equal, in three pairs, two in the middle, and two each side,
placed diagonally on a comirhon elevation, nearer the anterior
edge ; feet, first, second and fourth pairs suhequal, third short-
est, penultimate joint of the first pair armed with hooks in
the male.
Habits. Araneides sedentary, forming a silken tube in
crevices of walls, with a few threads spreading from the ori-
fice unto the edge of the crevice, the spider watching near
the entrance with its three anterior legs extended out.
Observations. This subgenus which was first confounded
by me with Dysdera, differs from it by the small size of its
chelieeres, and the position of its eyes. By the habits of the
spiders which compose it, it bears close affinity to Segestria,
but the position of its eyes is reversed. It is obvious that as
this is not Segestria, and cannot be referred to Dysdera, it
must constitute a new subgenus.
1. PYLARUS BICOLOR.
Description. Cephalothorax piceous ; abdomen bluish-
black ; first and second pairs of legs blackish, hairy, third and
fourth piceous. Male piceous ; abdomen with the base and
sides paler ; feet with few hairs, penult joint of the first pair
crooked and with two strong spines, the antepenult with about
four strong bristles on each side.
Observations. This spider, which is very common in Ala-
bama, makes its tubular habitation in the crevices of walls,
commonly waiting near the orifice with its three first pairs of
legs directed forwards. Its silken tube spreads out on the out-
29
226 Hentz^s Descriptions of the
side, and, whenever an insect touches one of the threads, the
spider issues out with the rapidity of a hawk and seizes its
victim, "which it carries immediately within. In damp, rainy
nights, the males and females are often found wandering from
their homes. The male, which is provided with very unusual
means of defence on its first pair of legs, is nevertheless ex-
cessively cautious in his approach to the residence of the
female. He advances with the utmost caution, remaining
motionless near the entrance for hours. This takes place in
October. I once observed a male in that situation, and wish-
ing to secure him, suddenly transfixed his cephalothorax with
a pin, when the female furiously rushed out and boldly grasp-
ed him, struggling to carry him off ; and she nearly succeed-
ed in robbing me of my prey, which she seemed to consider
her own. I have found this species hibernating in silken
tubes, along with various species of Attus, in December and
January. This proves that Dysdera jpumila is not a variety
of it.
Habitat. North Alabama.
PI. VIII. Fig. 3. Pylarus bicolor. $. a.Itstrophi. J. Its eyes. Fig. 4. Tlie
$ of Pylarus bicolor. a. Its right palpus.
2 PYLARUS PUMILUS.
Description. Livid yellow ; abdomen dusky on the disk
and towards the apex ; first and second pairs of legs with the
two last joints dusky ; hairy.
Observations. This species is usually foimd under the
bark of trees, enclosed in silk tubes.
Habitat. North Carolina, North Alabama.
PI. VIII. Fig. 5. Pylarus pumilus.
Genus. Filistata. Latr.
Characters. Cheliceres small^ incapable of reciprocal 7710-
tion, fang very small ; maxillae bent and surrounding the
lip J terTninating in a point ; lip more than half the length of
the maxillcB, widest in the middle j ending in a point ; eyes
eight, subequal, placed closely together on a common elevatio?i,
Araneides of the United States. 227
tivo in the. centre^ usually blacky three on each side, leaving a
space above and below opened towards the middle ones ; feet,
1. 4. 2. 3.
Habits. Araneides sedentary, forming a tube of silk in
the crevices of old walls, with loose threads spread out round
the orifice, the spider usually watching at the entrance.
Observations. The characters derived from the cheliceres,
which are articulated together so as to allow of little or no re-
ciprocal motion, is peculiar to this subgenus. On the whole, it
seems to have a greater affinity to Clotho than to any of the
Tetrapneumones of Latreille ; and, by its habits, it is closely
related to my Pylarus and to Segestrta. Independent of the
difficulty of ascertaining the pulmonary orifices, these points
of affinity between Dipneumones and Tetrapnedmon.2s show
that the distinction may prove an artificial one.
1. FILISTATA HIBERNALIS.
Description. Deep mouse-colored, covered with fine short
hair ; cephalothorax darker ; cheliceres small. Male pale
grey or livid ; palpi excessively long, two middle eyes black,
the others shining white.
Observations. It makes a tubular habitation of silk in
crevices on old walls or rocks, throwing an irregular web
which is spread on the wall or stone around the aperture. It
comes out occasionally during the winter, but cold is apt to
render it torpid, and it then remains several days in the sam'3
situation, moving slightly in the middle of the day. In walk-
ing, it uses its palpi like feet, and these organs are very long,
particularly in the male. I saw one of this species change
its skin in confinement. It had previously lost a leg by some
accident, but after moulting, it had a new one which had all
its joints, only a little shorter than the natural size ; its
cocoon is spherical.
Habitat. South Carolina on the sea-coast, North Alabama
on the banks of the Tennessee.
PI. VIII. Fig. 9, Filistata hibernalis. $ . a. Its trophi, with the palpi of llie
$ . b. Its eyes.
228 Hentz^s Descriptions of the
2. FILISTATA CAPITATA. .
Description. Dusky brown ; eyes much elevated, cephalo-
thorax with a deep longitudinal impression, beginning above
the eyes and not reaching the base ; cheliceres not closely ar-
ticulated together ; abdomen and feet with short hairs.
Observations. This species, communicated to me by Mr.
Thomas R. Button, was brought by him from Georgia, where
it inhabits crevices like Filtstata hibernalis. No females
were brought. It is strange that its cheliceres are not joined
together as in that species. The trophi in other respects cor-
respond entirely with it.
Habitat. Georgia.
PJ. Vin. Fig 7. Filisialacapitata,^ .
Genus. Lycosa. Latr.
Characters. Cheliceres large, fo^ngs moderate; maxillce
short, parallel, cut obliquely at the tip ; lip short, slightly
emarginate at the upper edge, which is slightly narrower
than the base ; eyes eight, unequal, four small placed ante-
riorly in a straight or slightly curved line, two large placed
above the two external ones of the first line, two of tniddle
size placed further out towards the base and iiearly forming
a square with the intermediate ones ; feet, 4. 1. 2. 3.
Habits. x\raneides making no web, wandering for prey,
hiding under stones and frequently making holes in the
ground in which they dwell, making at the orifice a ring of
silk, forming a consolidated entrance ; cocoon usually orbicu-
lar, often carried about by the mother, the young borne on
the back of her abdomen.
Observations. The subgenus Lycosa is not variable in its
characters like Dolomedes. The lower row of eyes is
straight in some species and more or less curved in others, but
I could not avail myself of this to make any satisfactory sub-
division. The upper mammulae, it is true, are longer in
Lycosa lenta, but I found them to vary in length in others
so imperceptibly that I could not adopt any of the three fam-
Araneides of the United States. 229
ilies of Walckenaer, which appear to me quite artificial.
These spiders are the eagles and lions of the family. They
are found swarming on the ground, running with great agili-
ty, a property belonging to those spiders in which the fourth
pair of legs is longest. Most are usually found wandering for
prey, except when engaged in maternal duties ; others dwell
in holes several inches deep, well rounded and supplied with
a ring of silk and little straws, consolidated so as to prevent
the crumbling of the earth. I have found one of these, in
the winter, which was supplied with a lid, and probably they
all close the orifice for hibernation. The mother carries its
cocoon attached to the posterior part of the abdomen. Small
species ramble about with these ; but the larger ones watch
them in their habitation or under stones. The moment the
young ones are hatched, they climb on the abdomen of the
mother, and remain there for a considerable time. They
give a monstrous and horrible appearance to the mother,
which seems hairy and twice as large as usual. If the
parent be touched or forcibly arrested, the young Spiders in-
stantly disperse and disappear. The mother when deprived
of its cocoon seems to loose all her ferocity and activity, but
if it be placed near her, the moment she perceives it, these
powers return, and she rushes to the cocoon, which she grasps
with renewed vigor. She defends her progeny to the last,
and her feet can be torn from her one by one, before she can
be compelled to abandon her treasure. Thus can maternal
tenderness be exhibited in beings which are relentless to
their own species and even to the sex which gives life to its
progeny. It is extremely difficult to distinguish the different
species of Lycosa, owing to the infinite varieties in colors,
marking and size. Future writers will probably clear the
confusion which I boast not of having removed during
twenty years of studious attention to this subgenus.
1. LYCOSA FATIFERA.
Description. Bluish black ; cephalothorax deeper in
color at the sides ; cheliceres covered with rufous hairs and
with a red elevation on their external side near their base ;
one of the largest species.
230 Araneides of the United States.
Observations. This formidable species dwells in holes, ten
or twelve inches in depth, in light soil, which it digs itself ;
for the cavity is always proportionate to the size of the spider.
The orifice of the hole has a ring, made chiefly of silk, which
prevents the soil from falling in when it rains. This Lycosa,
probably as large as the Tarantula of the South of Europe,
is common in Massachusetts ; but we have not heard of serious
accidents produced by its bite. Its poison, however, must be
of the same nature and as virulent. The reason perhaps why
nothing is said of its venom, is, that so very few instances can
have occurred of its biting any body. All persons shun
spiders, and these shun mankind still more. Moreover their
cheliceres cannot open at an angle which can enable them to
grasp a large object. Without denying its power to poison,
which it certainly has, it is well to expose popular errors, such
as that of the Romans in regard to the bite of the shrew
which it is now proved cannot open its mouth wide enough
to bite at all. This spider, when captured, shows some
combativeness, and has uncommon tenacity of life. It is a
laborious task to dig down its deep hole with the care neces-
sary not to injiu'c it. I have at times introduced a long slen-
der straw downward, till I could feel a resistance, and also the
struggle of the tenant ; and I could perceive that it bit the
straw. In one or two instances, by lifting the straw grad-
ually, I brought up the enraged spider still biting the inert
instrument of its wrath. It probably lives many years. A
piceous variety is found in Alabama, with the two first joints
of the legs, pectus and abdomen yellowish underneath, or
lighter in color.
Habitat. Massachusetts, North Alabama.
PI. VIII Fig. 8. Lycosa futifera, a. Its trophi. b. Its eyes.
2. LYCOSA (TARANTULA) CAROLINENSIS ? Bosc. M. S.
Description. Mouse-colored ; cephalothorax with an in-
dented blackish mark at base ; cheliceres covered witli rufous
hairs in front, and with a red elevation ; abdomen with several
whitish dots and angular transverse lines on the disk, sides
nearly white ; beneath, usually quite black, except the legs,
Fishes of the Ohio and its Tributaries. 231
which are whitish, the joints tipped with black. Male with
nearly the same marks, very black beneath. Attains a very
large size.
Observations. This spider has the same habits as L. fa-
tifera^ making deep excavations in the ground. It is fre-
quently found under stones, and possibly it is in such places,
nearer the surface, that the eggs are hatched. The female
carries her young on her back, presenting a hideous aspect,
being then apparently covered with animated warts. The
little monsters have the instinct, if the mother is much dis-
turbed, to escape and scatter in all directions. The male, not
unfrequently of an enormous size, is often found wandering
in October and November, in Alabama, and sometimes enters
houses.
Habitat. North Carolina, Georgia. North Alabama.
PI. VIII. Fig. 9. L. (Tarantula) Caroiinensis ? a. One leg, seen underneath.
Art. XVIL— descriptions OF THE FISHES OF LAKE ERIE,
THE OHIO RIVER AND THEIR TRIBUTARIES. By Jared
P. KiRTLAND, M. D.
[Continued from page 26.]
COREGONUS. CuV.
C. Artedi. Le Sueur. The Herring-Salmon.
Coregonus artedi. Le Sueur. Jour. Acad. Nat. Sciences, p. 23L
" " Richardson. Fauna Boreali-Amer., p. 203.
" '' Kirtland. Report on the Zoology of Ohio, p. 193.
Plate IX. Fig. L
Le Sueur's description of this species, contained in the first
volume of the " Journal of the Academy of Natural Sciences,
of Philadelphia," I copy entire.
'' C. Artedi. Body sub-fusiform, a little elevated at the
back ; head small, having an osseous radiated plate, which is
covered by the skin ; snout pointed.
232 Fishes of the Ohio
In form this species approaches the Scombers ; a section
of it is oval. Head small and narrow ; snout short, termina-
ted by small intermaxillaries ; maxillaries wide, sharp-edged
as in the herring, edges entire ; mandibles carinate, producing
inversely a triangular pedunculate expansion, very small con-
ical teeth inserted in the skin of the lips, at the extremity of
the jaws : these teeth were sufficiently manifest in a small in-
dividual, but not visible in a larger one, a female, which came
under my observation. Rays in the osseous plate of the head
tubular, and open at the exterior, some tending backwards,
and others towards the end of the snout. A faint carinated
line divides the top of the head in the dried specimens. Lat-
eral line straight and near the middle ; nostrils double, close to
the end of the snout, and articulation of the maxillaries ;
scales round, approximated, easily falling off; the base of the
tail is covered with them.
Color, Ash blue at the back, paler and silvery on the rest of
the body, with yellow tints on the tail, head and dorsal ; iris
whitish, pupil black.
B. 9 ; P. 16 ; D. 12 ; V. 12 ; A. 13 ; C. f rays.
Length ten to twelve inches. Very delicate food. Taken
in Lake Erie, and at Lewiston, Upper Canada. Called Her-
ring-Salmon."
Observations. The specimens I have seen of this species,
were more highly colored than those described by Le Sueur.
The upper surface of the head is tinged with green ; the back
is of a bluish ash-color and olive, fading on the sides to sky-
blue ; the sides and abdomen of a brilliant silver lustre.
The side of the head anterior to the eye is delicately diapha-
nous, and the gill-covers are slightly touched in different parts
with a metallic lustre.
The rays of the caudal fin are so much blended, that they
cannot be accurately counted.
It is taken in the month of September at Cleveland, in
considerable numbers, and is decidedly the best fish for eating
obtained in that vicinity.
and its Tributaries. 233
Esox. Lin.
E. reticulatus. Le Sueur. The Pickerel. Pike.
Esox reticulatus. Le Sueur, Jour. Acad. Nat. Sciences, Vol. I. p. 414.
" *' Kirtland. Report on the Zoology of Ohio, p. 194.
" ** Storer. Report on tbe Ichthyol. of Maas., p. 97.
Plate X. Fig. 2.
Head elongate, sloping from the base of the skull to the
tip of the nose, longitudinally sulcate between the eyes.
Lower jaw longer, the front teeth short, the lateral elevated
and larger ; a series of large glandular orifices evident on the
edge of the lower jaw and preoperculum.
Body sub-cylindric, compressed laterally ; back rounded,
slightly depressed longitudinally before the dorsal fin ; scales
emarginate, small.
Dorsal and a7ial fins rounded, the former larger, the
latter slightly posterior, both placed on fleshy bases.
Caudal fin bi-lobed, lobes obtuse, rounded.
Ventral and pectoral fins small, short and falcate.
Color. Head and hack deep olive and green, sides yellow-
ish, marked with oblique and longitudinal bars of green,
which give them a reticulated appearance : throat and belly
white. Dorsal^ caudal and anal fins yellowish and reddish,
reticulated in a similar manner with bands and spots of
deep olive or green.
Length. The specimen before me is 21 inches. Some
are taken that are 4 feet in length.
Habitat. Lake Erie, the Ohio river and most of their
tributaries.
D. 18 ; C. 20; A. 15; Y. 11 ; P. 16 rays.
Observations. The drawing was made from a specimen
taken at Cleveland. The colors were darker and more bril-
liant than in any that I have seen. The number of rays in
the caudal and anal fins does not agree with Le Sueur's de-
scription.
It is probably specifically identical with the fish known in
30
234 Fishes of the Ohio
ponds and rivers of the Atlantic States under the same name,
but from locality, assumes some variety of form and colors,
and also attains a greater size in the large Western Lakes,
than in any other part of the country. Those taken in the
Ohio are generally of a smaller size.
Anguilla. Cuv.
A. lutea. Raf. The Yellow Eel.
Anguilla lutea. Raf. Ichthy. Ohien. p. 78.
" laticauda. Raf. Ichthy. Ohien. p. 77.
Plate XI. Fig. 2.
Head flattened, abruptly elevated behind the eyes, ventri-
cose beneath the throat : jaws short, furnished with numer-
ous minute teeth, clustered and extending upon the anterior
part of the vomer : lower jaio projecting : eyes small, situa-
ted above the angles of the mouth.
Body cylindric, elongate and fusiform, covered with mi-
nute oval-oblong scales, evident to the naked eye only when
the skin is dessicated. Vent anterior to the middle of the
body : lateral line commences before the pectoral fins and
is flexuous above that fin.
Pectoral fill small, obovate-falcate ; with about 15 rays.
Dorsal^ caudal and anal fins continuous and uninterrupt-
ed, wider above and near the tip of the body, acuminate at
the extremity. The dorsal commences anterior to the anal,
and immediately behind the vent ; numerously rayed.
Length from 2 to 3 feet. The specimen from which the
drawing was made was 2 feet 9 inches long ; 5 inches in cir-
cumference at the commencement of the dorsal fin and 4 |
inches behind the base of the pectorals. From the tip
of the lower jaw to the base of the pectoral fin, 4 inches ;
and from the last point to the vent, 11 inches.
Color. Yellowish-brown on its sides and back, and whitish
on the belly ; the two colors meeting abruptly on the sides of
the abdomen.
Habitat. Ohio and its larger tributaries.
and its Tributaries. 235
Observations. This species was occasionally seen in the
markets of Cincinnati three years since, and being informed
that it could be obtained at any time, I took no pains to se-
cure a specimen. Since that time, I have never met with it,
and am therefore compelled to make a sketch from a well
prepared specimen in the Western Museum in this city, and
which Mr. Bartlett has had the politeness to place in my hands
for the purpose.
This specimen is labelled " Murena, or Anguilla laticaudata"
of Raf. It differs from the description of that species in
having the dorsal fin commence so far behind the pectoral fins,
and the tail acuminate at its extremity. Further observation
may decide that Mr. Rafinesque has made two species out of
mere varieties.
None of the species of this genus originally inhabited Lake
Erie or its tributaries ; but since direct communication has
been opened between them and the waters of the Ohio and
Mississippi rivers and some of the Atlantic streams, by the
construction of several canals, it is said that eels are beginning
to appear in the Lake and some of the Lake streams.
I have not at present the means of deciding whether some
of our species may not be similar to those of the Atlantic
tributaries.
Chatoessus. Cuv.
C. ellipticus. Kirtland. The Hickory or Gizzard-Shad.
Chatoessus ellipticus. Kirtland. Report on the Zoology of Ohio, p 195.
Dorosomanotata. (The young.) Rafinesquo. Ichthy. Oliien., p 40.
Plate X. Fig. I.
Head small, sub-oval, compressed on its sides, | the total
length ; nose globose, obtuse ; mouth small ; tipper lip emar-
ginate, thus increasing the opening of the mouth ; lower jaw
closes into the emargination. Eyes large, circular and silver*'.
Body oval, elliptical ; sides flattened, back rounded, abdomen
compressed, carinate and serrate : lateral line not apparent.
Dorsal fin triangular ; the posterior ray greatly elongated,
recurved.
236 Fishes of the Ohio
Caudal fin deeply bilobed, lobes equal, with scales extend-
ing upon the base of the rays.
Anal fin narrow, slightly falciform.
Ventral fin narrow, short, and does not extend as far back
as the base of the dorsal.
Pectoral fin does not reach to the commencement of the
ventral fin.
Length from 12 to 18 inches.
Habitat. Ohio river and its tributaries.
Color. Back and head olive and bluish, iridescent ; sides
silvery ; abdomen white, fins, dusky brown.
D. 13 ; C. 22 ; A. 32 ; V. — ; P. 15 rays.
Observations. The description of the Dorosoma notata
by Mr. Rafinesque, would not lead us to suspect that he had
this fish in view, yet I believe such was the case. He has
applied to the Dorosoma the same popular name that this is
known by in our markets. The characters he has mentioned
of, " a large brown and round spot above the base of the lat-
eral line and two oblong spots of an emerald color above the
head" are equally evident -in the young of our species but
disappear in older specimens.
He however omits to notice an important generic charac-
ter, the elongated posterior ray of the dorsal fin which is so
peculiar and prominent that it could hardly escape observation.
He is also incorrect in saying that " it is a small species,
seldom reaching over 9 or 10 inches." I have often met with
it measuring 18 inches in length.
He is still further incorrect in his statement that " it comes
in the Spring and disappears in the Fall." It is common in
the market of Cincinnati during the whole of winter.
There is no necessity for his genus Dorosoma, as it was
instituted exclusively to embrace this one species, and that
species adapts itself so well to the genus Chatoessus.
We should, however, have retained the specific name " no-
tatus,^^ had not the preference belonged to Le Sueur's Mega-
lops notatus, which Cuvier says is a Chatoessus. Le Sueur
published his description in 1818, and Rafinesque his in
1819 and '20.
and its Tributaries. 237
It receives the name of the Gizzard-Shad from the cir-
cumstance that it possesses a muscular stomach, which is
large, and resembles the gizzard of a gallinaceous fowl.
The older fishermen inform me, that its appearance in this
part of the Ohio, is comparatively rare ; it was unknown here
until the last twenty years. I believe it never bites at a hook.
A singular mortality seems to have befallen this species
during the last few days. From the 1st to the 8th of Jan-
uary, of the present season, 1840, the weather was uniformly
cold. It then became warm and pleasant, when great num-
bers of this species were observed to be dead in the Miami
Canal. Others were still living, but in a dying condition.
The greater part were found with their heads crowded into
some hole in the muddy bank, or some recess under stones.
They might also have been seen under similar circumstances
along the shores of Mill -creek, near this city. As the mortal-
ity was confined exclusively to this species, while others, in-
habiting the same localities, were in no wise affected, it is
evident that it was the effect of some cause acting peculiarly
on these fish.
They probably came up the Mississippi, from some warm
climate, and could not resist the late severe cold.
Their object in running their heads into the holes and re-
cesses about the bottom of the Canal, was no doubt to obtain
warmth from the earth, beneath, which was of a higher tem-
perature than the water, abounding with numerous floats of
ice.
Lucio-PERCA. Cuv.
L. Americana. Cuv. The American Sandra.
Le Sandre d'Amerique. (Lucio-perca Americana.') Cuv. et Val. I. 11. p. 122.
pi. xvi.
Lucio-perca Americana. Richardson. Fauna Boreali-Americana, p. 10.
«< " Kirtland. Report on Zoology of Ohio, p. 19.
Percafluvialilis,var? Richardson. Franklin's Journal, p. 725. 1823.
'« salmonea. Raf. Ichthy. Ohien. p. 21.
P. nigro-punctata. Raf. " " p. 23. (The male.)
Salmon of the Ohio river : Pike^ of iMke Eric : Pickerel., settlers on Lake Huron :
Sandre of the French Canadians : Horn fish of the Fur traders.
Plate IX. Fig. 2.
238 Fishes of the Ohio
Head elongate-cylindric, slightly flattened above the eyes
and beneath the throat ; not ^ the total length of the fish.
Eyes oblong-oval, situated above the angles of the mouth.
Iris yellow. Pupil semi-transparent, brownish. Jaws equal,
armed with sharp, strong, and slightly incurved teeth, those
of the vomer, finer. Tongue smooth. Operculum^ mar-
gined behind with a membrane and furnished with a spine
that is not terminal. Preoperculum delicately serrated.
Body cylindric and fusiform. Vent behind the middle.
Lateral line straight. Scales small and irregular.
Dorsal fins two ; the anterior spinous ; the posterior soft
and elevated before. Caudal fin lunate. Anal fin not equal
to the soft-dorsal ; remote from the caudal. Ventral fin fal-
cate, horizontal, situated beneath the pectoral. Pectoral fin
extends as far back as one third of the spinous-dorsal, but not
as far as the tip of the ventral.
Color. Head and back blackish, sides dusky and edged
below the middle with golden or coppery yellow ; the back
and sides banded or blotched irregularly with black ; abdo-
men white. The fins diaphanous and banded with inter-
rupted series of blackish dots.
Habitat. Lake Erie, the Ohio river and their tributaries.
D. 13—20 ; C. 16 ; A. 1—12 ; V. 6 ; P. 14 rays.
Observations. The males are smaller than the females ;
more slender, and more dusky colored. The former do not
often exceed 12 or 18 inches in length, while the latter are
met with measuring more than two feet in length.
In the water of the Lake they readily bite at a baited hook,
but are much more coy in the Ohio and its tributaries. They
are highly esteemed in the markets of Cincinnati and com- ,
mand an exorbitant price.
At certain seasons of the year, they are taken in great
quantities in some parts of Lake Erie and especially in the
Maumee River, where they are salted down in barrels, for sup-
plying the interior of the State. When thus salted, they be-
come at best, a tough, tasteless and insipid article of food, and
the day is probably not distant, when they will be displaced
and its Tributaries, 239
in that market, by other species of a superior quality, from
the Atlantic sea board.
A profitable and mutually advantageous barter might be
carried on, between the fisherman of our Eastern States and
the farmers of the West, in exchanging the fish of the one
section, for the pork, flour and butter of the other.
The demand for salted fish at the West is unlimited.
Shad, Cod and Mackerel are now carried there in considera-
ble quantities, and it is believed that other species, but little
esteemed at the East, yet very abundant, would, if suitably
cured, meet with a ready sale at the West. The Ale wife,
Herring and even the despised Menhaden, would pay for all
the expense of catching, packing, salting and transporta-
tion, and find a quick market at the West.
Centrarchus. Cuv.
C. (Bueus. Cuv. et Val. The Rock-bass : Goggle-eyed bass.
Black Sunfish.
Centrarchus cEneus. Cuv. et Valenc, t. III. p. 84.
" " Richardson. Fauna Boreali-Amcricana, p. 18 et fig.
Cychla mnea. Le Sueur. J. A. N. Sciences, Vol. II. p. 214.
*' '* Kirtland. Repoit on Zoology of Ohio, pp. 163, 191.
Plate XL Fig. 1.
Head obtuse ; jaivs somewhat rounded, furnished with
numerous small teeth ; lower jaw the longer. Tongue and
palate also furnished with teeth ; mouth large, extending as
far back as the middle of the eye ; eyes large, convex and
prominent ; the pupil black, tinged with bluish and is semi-
pcllucid : the iris black, with a red border surrounding the
pupil ; the eye-lids ferruginous or yellowish, often margined
with blue.
Body oblong, horizontal under the dorsal fin, rounded un-
der the throat and abdomen ; prominent at the base of the
soft -dorsal and soft-anal fins.
Dorsal Jin long ; spinous part half the height of the soft
parts, slightly recurved ; each spinous ray strong, and acute.
240 Fishes of the Ohio and its Tributaries.
The soft rays diaphanous, connected by a dusky, opaque
interstitial membrane, and extending to the base of the
caudal fin.
Caudal fin short, abrupt, slightly lunate.
Anal fin, not as long as the dorsal, the four first spinous
rays gradually increasing in length, the fifth and sixth equal
to the fourth, and two thirds the length of the longest of the
soft rays, which equal those of the dorsal.
Ventral fin triangular, but in the specimen before me, does
not attain to the anal, in accordance with the description of
Le Sueur.
Pectoral fin ovate rounded, pellucid, and does not reach as
far back as the point of the ventral.
Length 7 to 10 inches.
Color is generally coppery, occasionally tinged with green ;
head and back dusky-olive, blotched irregularly with dark
spots : the jaws, lips and throat dusky ; thorax bluish or steel-
grey. The black spots on the bases of the scales give a band-
ed appearance to the sides and back. The bright colors so
vivid during life, fade away at the approach of death.
D. 11—11: a 17 f; A. 6—10 ; V. 5; P. 16.
Observations. The preoperculum is minutely but distinct-
ly denticulated on its inferior edge and posterior angle, and
the operculum terminates behind the eye in two obtuse spines
connected by an intervening membrane.
It abounds in almost every permanent stream in our State,
and usually harbors beneath logs, rocks and stumps, where it
is easily taken by a baited hook. During winter it does not
migrate.
The specimen before me, was obtained in the Cincinnati
market, and is of the same size as the plate. It has one less
spinous ray than Le Sueur's figure in the 2d vol. of the Jour.
Acad, of Nat. Sciences, Philadelphia.
Bimieifs Description of a Helix. 241
Art. XVIIL— description OF A SPECIES OF HELIX, NEWLY
OBSERVED IN THE UxNITED STATES. Br Amos Binnet.
(Read December 1, 1841.)
HELIX SUB-PLANA.
H. testA discoided, fuliginosa, aut corneo-rufescente, nitente; spira depressa;
anfractibus quinque vel eex ; apertura semilunari, transverBa ; labro simplici,
acuto; basi piano; umbilico parvo.
Description.
Animal. Not hitherto noticed.
Shell. Flattened, planulate above and beneath ; epidermis
brownish or smoky horn-color, shining ; whorls five and a
half, those nearest the apex striated transversely with very mi-
nute and delicate wrinkles ; suture distinct, not much im-
pressed ; aperture transverse, not expanded, the plane of the
aperture making nearly a right angle with the plane of the
base of the shell ; lip simple, thin, acute ; base flattened, um-
bilical region a little impressed ; umbilicus very small, round
and deep, not exhibiting the volutions. Greatest transverse
diameter less than three-fourths of an inch.
Geographical Distribution. Found hitherto only in the
mountainous region of eastern Tennessee.
Remarks. The only American species which this shell
can be said to resemble, is Helix inornata, which in size and
color is quite like it, and at first sight may be taken for it. It
differs from it in the following particulars. The upper and
lower surface are both more flattened, and the outline is a more
perfect circle. The number of whorls in specimens of the
same size is greater by nearly one volution. The surface of
the whorls is less rounded ; the last whorl expands but very
little towards the aperture ; the base is broader, less indented,
and very flat ; the umbilicus is rounder, and better defined ;
and the aperture is not thickened within by a white testa-
ceous deposit.
I have seen but two specimens, which were brought from
Tennessee by Mr. S. S. Haldeman.
31
242 Savage's Observations on
Art. XIX. — observations ON THE HABITS OF THE
PYTHON NATALENSIS. By Thomas S. Savage, M. D., of Cape
Palmas, Western Africa. (Communicated April 8th, 1842.)
In the ninth number of the " Illustrations of South Africa,"
Dr. Andrew Smith has minutely described and beautifully
figured the Python Natalensis. During the present season
Dr. Savage has kindly sent our Society a specimen of this spe-
cies, in fine preservation, accompanied with a valuable com-
munication respecting its habits, from which the Publishing
Committee present the following extracts. Other papers re-
specting the habits of the Chimpanse and many of the curious
and interesting animals of that country, now so imperfectly
known, have been received, and will be published as our
limits may admit. — Puh. Com.
This serpent, when spoken of by travellers and residents,
has been erroneously called Boa, and thus confounded with the
South American genus. There is a striking similarity, how-
ever, between the two, both in structure and habits, so that
were it not for the arrangement of the sub-caudal scales, one
would be identified with the other.
During my residence here, which has been five years, I
have seen a number of individuals of this serpent, but one,
however, alive, which is the specimen I now send.
The first of which I had any authentic account was one
that appeared on the Mission premises of the A. B. C. F. Mis-
sions. The facts in the case have been kindly furnished by
my friend, the Rev. J. L. Wilson. He informed me that it
was attracted into the yard by a dog. He says, in answer to
my inquiries, '' He was fourteen feet long, and held the dog
not more than two minutes before the natives came to his re-
lief. I suppose that the snake had stretched himself across
the path, and seized the dog in the act of jumping over him.
I was too much frightened to observe what was the shape of
the body while he held the dog in his folds. I am inclined
to think that he had nothing to fasten his tail to, while he
held the dog. None of the bones of the dog were broken,
the Python Natalensis. 243
and I am inclined to think that he received no injury what-
ever. The snake did not let go his hold until he had received
a fatal blow from a bill-hook. The dog then leaped up sud-
denly, several times, as if he were not sure of having been
extricated, ran around and entered the back yard, but, for
some time appeared afraid of every thing and every body.
His back only was slimed, and this could not be washed off,
but gradually wore away in the course of a week or ten days."
The next individual of which I have heard, was attracted
into the house of a colonist, an old woman, by a hen and her
chickens. An unusual noise was heard under the bed, in the
night, which awakened the woman. By a light she discov-
ered the serpent in the act of seizing its prey ; affrighted, she
fled to the house of a neighbor, who came and captured him
with his gun.
The third individual appeared upon my own premises early
in 1837. An antelope was discovered by some workmen a
short distance from my house. Upon the first sight the na-
tives, as usual, raised a cry, when he suddenly disappeared
among the bushes. They started in pursuit. But a few mo-
ments elapsed before they heard a cry from the antelope,
which directed them to the spot, where they beheld the animal
struggling in the folds of a large Python. They all fired
simultaneously, and shot at the same instant both the serpent
and his victim. The former I measured, and found it over
fourteen feet. The antelope was a large one, and it was dif-
ficult to believe that it could have been received throuah the
throat of the serpent comparatively so small. The head had
been cut off, and the body greatly mutilated before I saw it,
but taking a section of the skin where the abdomen begins to
expand, above the vent, and not including the greatest volume,
I stretched it moderately. It was very easily distended; and
I soon satisfied myself that without going beyond the natural
power of expansion, it would have taken in the body of the
antelope.
It was skinned by the natives, and the flesh, when denu-
ded, was of the most delicate white. It was divided among
them, and not a particle, whether of skin or any other
244 Savage's Observations on
was lost. All was carried home, cooked, and eaten. From
the skin was made a soup. I was extremely disgusted at the
sight of a man carrying off in his hand, with an air of great
satisfaction, a string of the intestines. This and other ser-
pents are eagerly sought by the natives for food.
I have seen two other individuals in the course of the pres-
ent year. They were captured by natives who were clearing
up their land for rice farms. They were much mutilated by
transverse gashes from these " bill-hooks." Three more, I
was informed, were found upon the same piece of land, which
led the individual to abandon it, from the superstitious notion
that it could not yield a crop.
The next specimen is the one before me. It measured ten
feet in length ; is young, and was captured on the 22d Feb-
ruary, by my associate, the Rev. Joshua Smith, on the prem-
ises of one of our out-stations. His account, in answer to my
inquiries, is as follows.
" I had retired for the night, but was wakeful and unable
to get to sleep. About twelve o'clock, I heard Fanny (a fa-
vorite dog) barking violently in the girls' school-house. The
barking soon ended in a cry of distress. I thought it prob-
able that a leopard had attacked her, as they often do carry off
dogs and other domestic animals. I went down and walked
around the house where there was a hole, affording Fanny in-
gress and egress. The moon shone brightly, but I could not
see the cause of trouble, nor hear any noise. I called the dog
by name, but she did not appear, nor could I hear any thing
except what I thought to be the hiss of some ducks, that were
shut up there. I opened the door, but still I could see noth-
ing. I then went back to my chamber for a lantern, and re-
turning, opened again the door, when I discovered the dog in
the folds of a serpent, with her back downwards, and seem-
ingly motionless. I went back to my chamber for a weapon,
and finding only a country dagger, I returned accompanied by
some men, and entered the school-house again with the lan-
tern in my hand. The serpent was coiled twice or thrice
around the dog, his tail grasping the foot of a bench, and his
jaws fastened to her throat. His motion in compressing his
the Python Natalensis. 245
prey may be compared to that of a cord when tightened
ai'ound any thing, and some one puUing first at one end and
then at the other. I thought it best to thrust the dagger into
the snake as near the head as possible ; but as that was hidden
by the bench, I could not see it, and I made a thrust through
the lungs. It started and Fanny was thrown from its folds
with a jerk, when its object was to retreat by the way it had
entered. I then withdrew the dagger and thrust it into the
snake further back, so as to hold him till the men on the out-
side could disable him. As his head appeared they beat him
with sticks so as to prevent him from running away entirely."
To the above I will add, that Mr. Smith displayed great
fearlessness on the occasion ; for though there were on the
spot a number of men, both colonists and natives, yet not one
could be induced to follow him into the house. An attack
from the serpent might have been apprehended, for he was
evidently in a state of extreme hunger.
The general habit of this serpent in seeking for its prey, is
to lie in ambush near a frequented path, or watering place,
and suspended from a tree or with its tail fixed to some other
object, suddenly dart upon the unwary animal. The attack
is so sudden and violent that the victim is often prostrated
and stunned, and then begins the dreadful process of constric-
tion. A bullock was so much injured in a recent attack as to
be supposed beyond the possibility of recovery.
In making the onset, it is not always necessary that the
tail should be coiled around a fixed object. The hooks or
claws near the anus are sometimes protruded, it is said (and
the evidence is wholly satisfactory) and inserted in the ground
or under roots, thus affording a fulcrum which gives incon-
ceivable force to the blow.
These horny processes or rudimental feet, as they have been
called, are also serviceable in ascending trees. They are in-
serted into the ground, and bark of the tree, constituting
fixed points which greatly facilitate the ascent. We have
satisfactory testimony also in proof of another habit that I
have never seen mentioned, in which these hooks must be
highly serviceable. It is said that in fields more or less ojxin,
24G CaboVs Observations on
they often raise their heads above the surrounding grass and
shrubbery, in search of prey ; their apphcation then in this
act, must be evident ; protruded and penetrating the ground
beneath the roots, they must afford great support to the body.
In this position birds have been known to attempt to ahght,
mistaking it, in its motionless attitude, for a stick or stump,
and thus to have fallen unwarily within its distended jaws. ,
Instances of its attack upon man are very rare, and never,
probably, except when it is in a state of extreme hunger.
The natives fear them single handed, but not in numbers.
They seek them for food, esteeming them very highly on
their bill of fare.
Its places of resort are streams and damp places. Al-
most all animals constitute its prey. It is not poisonous, as is
well known. Its constrictive power is all that renders it
formidable.
Art. XX. — observations ON THE CHARACTERS AND
HABITS OF THE OCELLATED TURKEY, (MELEAGRIS
OCELLATA, Cuv.) By Samuel Cabot, Jr. M.D. (Read June, 1842.)
During a recent residence of eight months in Central Amer-
ica, having had many opportunities of learning much that is
new and; I think, worthy of attention, with regard to this and
other rare and interesting birds, both from personal observation
and the accounts of others well acquainted with their habits, I
take this means of communicating it to those who may be
interested in this branch of Natural History.
I find three plates of this bird, accompanied with descrip-
tions ; one in Griffith's edition of Cuvier's Animal Kingdom,
Vol. VIII. p. 164, and another in the work of Temminck, PL
112, and a third in the Naturalist's Library, Vol. III. p. 143.
The plates are very imperfect and do not give a true idea of
the bird ; but the description annexed to the plate in the Nat-
uralist's Library is tolerably correct, as far as it goes ; although
being taken from a dried skin, of course, in some points it is
imperfect. The writer says, " This splendid and curious bird
was first described ])y Baron Cuvier in the Memoires du Mu-
the Ocellated Turkey. 247
seiim, from the specimen which graced the collection of Mr.
Bullock, and which, at the dispersion of that valuable museum,
was purchased by the French government ; and we believe
that it is still the only specimen known to exist in any collec-
tion." This specimen still exists in the collection of the
Jardin des Plantes, at Paris, and is in a fine state of preser-
vation. I believe that there exists also another in the col-
lection belonging to the Earl of Derby ; although I did not
see it myself, when I visited that fine collection, in the
spring of 1841. But when at the Havanna, I was assured
by Mr. Kennedy, one of the gentlemen on the commission
for the adjudication of slavers, taken by English cruisers, that
such a specimen did exist in the possession of the noble Earl.
The bird which is now in the collection of the Garden of
Plants, was taken by some wood-cutters at the Bay of Hon-
duras, from three which they saw. The specimen was sent
alive to England, to Sir Henry Halford, but having been in-
jured, died before it reached him, and was presented by him,
to Mr. Bullock, and as the writer in the Naturalist's Library
says, '' Nothing was recorded of its habits^ and it is not known
whether the tail is capable of being expanded as in the com^-
mon species."
This bird inhabits, as nearly as I can learn, all the country
to the south of Texas, as far as the Isthmus of Panama, and
seems to replace, in those countries, the common wild Turkey,
[Meleagris gallipavo,) which inhabits the countries north of
this as far as Canada.* Latham says, that it is found in South
America, but does not give his authority, and indeed could
have had no such authority, as the only specimen which had
then been seen by naturalists, was the one above mentioned,
which, as we have seen, was taken by log-cutters in the Bay
of Honduras ; and indeed, if I am not mistaken, this is the
only specimen known to naturalists up to the present day.
Messrs. Stephens and Catherwood met with these birds on
their former expedition, as far south as they went, and in im-
mense numbers, along the shore of the Pacific.
* I think it very probable that the common Turkey is found in Mexico, as we
learn that the first 'lurkeys were sent to Spain from Mexico, and I think it very
certain that they were not Meleagris ocellata.
248 CaboVs Observations on
Latham says, '' How far it may be right to notice this bird
as distinct in species, we cannot determine, but most certainly
the brilUancy of colors throughout, as well as the distribution
of them, encourages an appearance of propriety in so doing ; as
we can scarcely suppose that the mere difference of climate,
in the warmer and colder parts of America, is sufficient to ac-
count for the great difference of plumage." He is undoubt-
edly right, and if he had seen the bird alive, even without
knowing any thing of its habits, the suggestion of such a
doubt, as having any possible foundation, would never have
occurred to him.
The form, and motions of the bird are almost as distinct
from those of the common Turkey, as is the difference of the
plumage ; its form is more slender and delicate, it does not
strut in the manner of our turkey, its cry is very different, not
having the least resemblance to the gobble; it is a weak,
squealing sound, and occasionally a sort of yelping, or rather
sudden, loud, cooing sound. When they fight, which they
do frequently, with the domestic turkeys and other poultry,
they seize their antagonist by the head, with their bill, and
strike with their long spurs in the manner of the game cock.
They are a more courageous bird than the common turkey.
They do not go in flocks, except while the old bird has charge
of her young, keeping generally in pairs or singly ; and al-
though one may sometimes start a large number together,
from the same cornfield, it is merely accidental, they having
assembled on account of the abundance of food accumulated
in one spot, and when leaving the field, to go to roost, they go
off in pairs, or singly, and when met with in the woods, they
are never found in numbers together ; all which is different
from the habit of the common turkey, which is rarely found
singly, and almost, if not quite, always roosts in flocks, in cer-
tain roosting places,* to which the same individuals appear to
resort every night, unless disturbed. Their food is pretty much
the same as that of the common turkey, as far as the country
affords it ; of course they cannot eat acorns, or beech nuts,
* Nuttall says, of the common Turkey, that " they are not gregarious, except
accidentally, or from the necessity of seeking food."
the Ocellated Turkey. 249
which are amongst the favorite articles of food to our turkey,
because their native country does not produce them, but they
eat Indian corn, berries, ants, etc., of all which our turkey is
very fond. Their manner of flight is the same ; alternate
quick flapping their wings, and soaring. Their flesh has the
same appearance, but I think that the flav^or is not so good as
that of the common turkey.
There is another occasional habit of theirs, which I state
on the authority of others, but the truth of which I cannot
well doubt, viz. ; that of building their nests in trees. Mr.
Catherwood, when at Palenque, shot an old female turkey
from her nest, placed at a considerable height from the ground ;
and the Indians, who were with him at the time, caught four
of the young, (several of which Mr. C. observed to fall from
the nest soon after the old one,) which they took home with
them to rear. Now, in this case, one might say that it is
very possible, Mr. C. might have been deceived by the
fact of the turkey being, when shot, on or near the nest of
some other large bird ; but on the other hand, it is hardly
jxDssible that Indians, accustomed from childhood, to observ-
ing natural objects, and the habits and appearance of animals
about them, could have been deceived in the appearance of
the young of a bird, forming so important an item in their ar-
ticles of food, and of which they had undonbtedly seen a
great number. Besides which, I was told, by persons likely
to know, that this bird did occasionally build its nest in trees
to their certain knowledge, and giving as a reason for it that
it was in situations liable to be flooded by the heavy rains.
Now as we know that there are very well authenticated in-
stances of other birds, whose usual habit is to place their nest
on the ground, doing this same thing, one of which instances
rests upon the authority of Mr. Audubon, viz. ; that of the
gulls on one of the small islands near the coast of Labrador,
in consequence of the persecution which they have met with ;
why may not the same be the case with this bird, and for a
similar cause ? The woods about Palenque abound with tigers,
wild cats, snakes, &/C., and are also very liable to be over-
32
250 Cabofs Observations on
flowed during the rainy season ; and is it not possible, that in
order to guard herself against surprise, while sitting, and in a
measure to protect her eggs, and young, from the attacks of
ravenous animals, and also to secure them from the flooding
caused by the rain, she may, in some places, and under some
circumstances, have resorted to this way of placing her nest,
instead of the usual manner ? The eggs, I have been told by
the Indians and others, are marked like those of the common
turkey, but I have never seen them myself.
The male bird is about three feet six inches in length from
the tip of the bill to the tip of the tail. Bill formed as in the com-
mon turkey. Head and neck, to two and a half or three inches
below head, bare, except a few scattered hairs and a row of
feathers which surround the external orifice of the ear. This
bare skin is of a rich stone blue, except immediately around
the eyes, where it is red. At the base of the bill there is an
erectile appendage of one and a quarter inches long, stone blue
except the apex which is of a bright orange. From each side
of this part, two rows of round knobs, of a bright orange, run-
ning backward over the superciliary ridges as far as the back
part of the red circle which surrounds the eye ; there is one
very small similar knob, at about three lines in front of each
external ear. At about a line behind the principal appendage,
at the base of the bill, is another of about three and a half
lines in height, and two and a half lines through at the base,
of a stone blue color, having seven or eight of the above men-
tioned orange knobs on different parts of it, principally on the
summit ; immediately behind, and in fact joining on to this
appendage is another, of about one line in height, and having
three of the orange knobs on the top of it. Behind each angle
of the lower jaw is a row of three small red knobs, and at the
lower part of the bare skin on the under side are seven or
eight more small red knobs. Feathers of neck and upper
parts of back and breast in scollops of rich crow-color mar-
gined near the tip with black, and tipped with golden green.
Feathers of lower parts of back, rich varying green, margined
near the tip with black, and tipped with rich golden bronze.
the Ocellated Turkey. 251
Feathers of the lower parts of the breast of a deep crow-color,
and tipped with rich golden bronze. JNo pectoral appendage.
Flank and thigh-coverts rich golden green, margined with a line
of black near the tip, and tipped with golden bronze. Feathers
on shoulder of a rich golden green, fringed with black. The
greater wing coverts are of rich golden bronze. The outer-
most secondaries have the principal part of the outer webs
pure white, the bands in the centre not appearing when the
wings are closed ; the undermost are crossed with glossy green-
ish black bands, the shafts are black. The primaries are black,
marked obliquely with white, the marks running in the course
"of the barbs on each side of the shaft. The first of the pri-
maries is the shortest, and the sixth longest. The tail con-
sists of eighteen feathers rounded at the tips, and beautifully
marked in their whole extent with alternate white and black
wavy lines, and having an eye in the end of each, somewhat
like those in the tail of the Peacock ; each of the tail feathers
is tipped with a band six-eighths of an inch wide, of golden
bronze. The length of the longest tail feather is about 15
inches, and that of the shortest is about 11 inches : the tail is
cuneiform. The tail coverts are beautifully marked with the
same wavy lines as the tail itself, and at the tip of each feather
is a beautiful spot formed by first a scolloped line of black,
then a beautiful patch of golden green, six-eighths of an inch
deep, then another line of black, and then a broad tip of golden
bronze five-eights of an inch deep. These eyes in the tip of
the tail, of the tail coverts, and on the coverts at the root of
the tail, form three curved rows, which give a very beautiful
appearance to the tail. The feet and tarsus are stoutj and of
a purplish red color. Tarsus five inches and three-eighths long.
Middle toe two inches and six-eighths long. Spur strong and
sharp, one inch and three-eighths long, (sometimes longer.)
The anatomy much the same as in the common turkey. Fe-
male smaller, and much less brilliant.
252 Bailey 07i the Siliceous Spicules
Art. XXI. — on THE EXISTENCE OF SILICEOUS? SPICULiE
IN THE EXTERIOR RAYS OF ACTINIA; AND MEMORANDA
CONCERNING THE SILICEOUS ANIMALCULES OF BOS-
TON. By G. W. Bailey, Prof. Chem. Min. and Geol., U. S. Military
Academy. (Communicated June, 1842.)
During a recent visit to Boston, in April, I eagerly em-
braced the long wished for opportunity to examine the marine
siliceous infusoria of our coast ; for I hoped to be able to de-
tect, in a living state, some of those elegant forms which
occur so abundantly in the fossil infusorial strata of the marine ^^
tertiary of Virginia. I was aware that Ehrenberg had de-
tected many of these forms in a living state, in the sea at
Cuxhaven and elsewhere, and I felt confident that our shores
must abound in similar forms. In company with Dr. Gould,
I visited the docks near the Chelsea ferry, and collected from
the immersed logs, &c., a quantity of filamentous Algae,
among which I knew that many of the objects of my search
were likely to be entangled. On subjecting them to a mi-
croscopic observation I detected a number of very interesting
and beautiful forms, although the season was not the most
favorable. The first objects which attracted my attention
were great numbers of siliceous spiculae, precisely similar to
those found fossil in the infusorial stata above referred to j
these I found among the Algoe, and also more abundantly in
the mud of the docks. These spiculae resemble those found
in some species of Spongia and Tethya. and I believe that
Ehrenberg refers the fossil ones to these genera ; but an ob-
servation which I made leads me to suspect that some of
them, at least, are derived from the exterior rays of Actinia.
On examining, with a high magnifying power, the rays of a
large species of Actinia which had an orange colored base and
olive rays (A. marginata, Lesueur?) I found that the white
rays, which form the exterior circle, appeared to differ from all
others, being filled with spiculae, arranged with great regular-
ity, and in countless numbers, radiating from the axis of each
arm, (See fig. 1, b and c.) Each of the spiculae was perfor-
ated with a longitudinal cavity, from which was protruded a
in the exterior Rays of Actinia. 253
very long and delicate fibre (See fig. 1, a.) These spiculse
resembled so much, in their form, perforation, and general ap-
pearance, some of the fossil siliceous spiculse above referred
to, that, like the fossil ones, they must be siliceous. This
question I had not the means of deciding, but I hope it will
be settled by some of the Boston naturalists. It is only ne-
cessary to burn one of the rays and examine the ashes ; the
siliceous spiculstj will of course, retain their form after igni-
tion. It would be an interesting fact, if, by means of these
spiculas, we could obtain evidence of the existence of species
of Actinia during the epoch of the Eocene tertiary ; for who
would expect that such soft and perishable creatures could
leave, for such a length of time, any trace of their existence.
The annexed sketches (See fig. 1, a. b, c,) were made mere-
ly as memoranda as I hoped to have further opportunities
for observation. They will serve to indicate the form and
position of the spicules although they have no pretensions to
accuracy.
The siliceous Bacillaria, of Boston Harbor, appear to be
numerous and elegant.
The following is a list of the chief species noticed by me
in April, 1842.
Ceratoneis fasciola, ) motions very active. These spe-
Ceratoneis closteriujn, ^ cies were recently discovered by
Ehrenberg. Figures may be found in a late number of the
Berlin Transactions.
Coscinodisciis radiatus, fragments only were observed.
Coscinodiscus ,or Actinocycliis 7 Toriform-siliceous bodies
were observed in the living state containing a yellowish brown
matter disposed in 5 or 6 radiant portions, each of which was
repeatedly branched.
Gallionella sulcata.
Gallionella 7nonilifor7nis.
Navicula viridis, living in salt water, but diilering in no
respect from the fluviatile species.
Navicula , Plate II. fig. 18, of Bailey's sketch of
American Bacillaria.
Fragillaria , a marine species with very llexible
254 Bailey on Siliceous Animalcules.
iilamentSj very abundant in Algae at Boston, and near Marble-
head.
Cocconeis scutellum 1 adhering in great quantities to Zos-
tera and other marine plants.
Echinella flahellata.
Synedra , parasitic in vast quantities on filamen-
tous algae covering them with a glistening envelope of a
brownish color.
Tessela arcuata.
Achnanthes hrevipes.
Goniphonema clavatum.
Naunema , immense quantities of one or more species
of Naunema were observed growing on the flats, near the
Common. The greater part of the brown matter attached to
the marine plants at this situation, consists of long tubes filled
with siliceous animalcules of the genus Naunema. Tons of
them might be collected here.
Emersonia elegans. I propose to give this name to a beau-
tiful siliceous animalcule found in Boston harbor, and which
appears to belong to a new genus. This genus I wish to
name Emersonia, if the President of the Boston Society of
Naturalists will accept so small a tribute of respect. It may
be characterized as follows ;
Genus. Emersonia.
Family Bacillaria, Section Naviculacea.
Carapace siliceous, compressed, central portion oblong, sep-
arated by deep lines of constriction from the two terminal, bi-
cuspidate or auricled portions, forming chains, which open in
a zig-zag manner.
Emersonia elegans (See fig. 2, a, 6, c. d.) Central portion
nearly square, containing yellowish globules disposed in a cir-
cular group. Hab. Boston harbor.
Emersonia antiqua, (Bailey's sketch of Bacillaria, PI. 2,
fig. 25.) Central portion much broader than long. Fossil in
the infusorial stratum of Richmond, Va.
I presume that a more careful examination of the infusoria
Ayres^ Fishes of Brookhaven.
255
of Boston harbor, if made at a later season, would add greatly
to the above list.
Fig. 1.
Fig. 2.
Explanation of the Figures.
Fig. 1. a. One of the spiculte from a white external ray of Actinia marginata ?
showing its longitudinal perforation and the long projecting fil-
ament, much magnified.
h. Ideal longitudinal section of a ray of Actinia to show the manner
in which the spiculse are arranged; at d are seen the vibrillee,
and ate the long filaments.
c. Ideal cross section of the ray.
Fig. 2. Emersonia elegans.
a. single individual.
h. cross section of the same.
c. chain of several individuals.
d. group of ovules.'' of a yellowish brown color.
Art. XXII.— enumeration OF THE FISHES OF BROOKHA-
VEN, LONG ISLAND, WITH REMARKS UPON THE SPE-
CIES OBSERVED. By William O. Ayres, of East Hartford, Con-
necticut (Communicated January 12th, 1842.)
During a residence of three years on Long Island, I have
endeavored to improve the opportunities occurring to me of
observing our fishes, and of ascertaining their habits ; some of
the results of these observations, I now take the liberty of
presenting. My location has been at Miller's Place, a village
256 Ayres'' Enumeration of the
in the township of Brookhaven, sixtytwo miles from New
York. About a mile west of the village, a sheet of water
enters from the Sound, called Old Man's Harbor. This har-
bor and the parts of the Sound adjacent, have afforded most
of the marine species recorded. The fresh water species have
been derived from different places which will be found noted
in connection with the fishes. Enjoying the advantage of
gathering specimens in waters in the neighborhood of those
whose Ichthyology was illustrated by Dr. Mitchill, I believe
that I have been able to identify many of his species, inclu-
ding one or two in which, it appears tome, an error has been
committed, in the Report upon the Fishes of Massachusetts.
Such an error, from the looseness and inaccuracy of many of
Dr. Mitchill's descriptions, is very natural, and in certain cases
unavoidable.
In the course of my researches, I have obtained several
species which appear to me as yet undescribed ; of these I
propose to offer descriptions and drawings.
PeRCA FLAVE5CENS. Mitcll.
In many of the fresh waters of the island, the Yellow Perch
is not uncommon. In one or two ponds, stocked with them
within a few years, they have increased very rapidly, and
have almost entirely destroyed the Trout, which before were
abundant. Corwin's Pond, near the centre of Brookhaven,
was supplied with the spawn of this species about four years
since. The pond is more than half a mile in length, a,nd pre-
viously contained no fish but Pickerel ; now Perch may be
taken of good size, in any part of it. The largest specimen
I have seen, was caught in the Ronckonkama pond ; it weigh-
ed about two and a half pounds.
It appears to me that too great importance is attached, by
most naturalists, to the number of fin-rays, as constituting a
specific character. Cuvier even gives, as one of the few dis-
tinctions between the Perca graiiulata and P. fluviaiilis, a
ditTerence of one ray in the second dorsal. If this character
is ever constant, surely it will be in the present genus. I have
Fishes of Brookhaven, L. I. 257
however, two specimens of the flavescens which number
fourteen rays in the first dorsal, several which give thirteen,
and one of twelve in the same fin. Dr. Storer states the num-
ber at thirteen ; Dr. Mitchill, at twelve. In fish of other gen-
era, I have even found the pectorals, on opposite sides of the
same specimen, giving a difierent number of rays ; I will men-
tion such examples when arriving at the species in their
order.
Etheostoma Olmstedi. Storer.
This species I have seen, on the island, only in the Con-
necticut — a stream emptying into Fireplace Bay. They are
commonly found lying on the bottom, and if disturbed, they
dart forward a few yards and drop again on the sand. I have
not found them more than four inches in length.
Labrax lineatus. Cuv.
The Striped Basse is common on both the north and south
sides of the island. On the north side they are seen in the
Sound as early as the first of May, and remain till November.
Owing to the waters being shallow and very clear, I have not
succeeded in taking them with the hook ; they are caught ex-
clusively with nets. They do not commonly exceed four
pounds in weight, and the largest I have known, weighed but
forty. On the south side, however, they are taken both in
the bays and in the ocean, in much larger numbers and of
greater size. Fifty thousand weight have been drawn by a
single net in five weeks ; and the largest weigh from a hun-
dred to a hundred and twenty pounds. The food of this
species, while with us, appears to consist of small fish, chiefly
Ammodytes and Atherinas, Cuttle Fish, Shell Fish (Mytili
and Myae, mostly) and young crabs, or, which seems to be a
greater delicacy to them — soft crabs.
Of three specimens, two have nine rays in the first dorsal,
while the other has but eight.
Labrax mucronatus. Cuv.
This Basse is not common ; I have met with them in
only three localities, a small pond and creek at Setauket,
33
258 Ayres^ Enumeration of the
another at Greenport, and Great Pond, near Riverhead. The
largest I have seen were less than a pound in weight.
POMOTIS VULGARIS. CuV.
This species, I believe, does not occur within the bounds
of Brookhaven ; in all the streams and ponds which I have
examined, I have been unable to find it. It has been sent to
me, however, from Great Pond, and I have been informed that
it is found also at Oyster Bay. The specimens from River-
head were of good size, the largest being seven and a quarter
inches in length.
Prionotus strigatus. Cuv.
This is much less common than the succeeding species and
does not arrive so early ; the first one taken, the last season,
(1841) was caught the 13th of August. Both this and the
following species, are sometimes used as food, but are not es-
teemed.
Prionotus Carolinus. Cuv.
This species is abundant, and often very troublesome in
taking the bait designed for better fish. Their usual food con-
sists of shrimps, small crabs, both hard and soft, and not un-
frequently the sand-lauuces : but they often bite at the hooks
used in fishing for Porgees, for which the bait consists of soft
clams (Myae.) They arrived the last season. May 7th, and
left us about the second week in August. The eggs of the
female are deposited about the last of June. When at rest,
they lie on the bottom, with their broad pectorals sdmetimes
spread, and sometimes closed : in swimming, however, the
pectorals are closed and laid flat upon the body. If alarmed
by tlie approach of a boat or any other object, they bury
themselves so completely in the sand that a very close obser-
vation is necessary to detect them. This concealment is
eff'ected by a rapid, lateral movement of the body, which dis-
places the sand from beneath, and causes it to fall upon their
sides and back, covering them entirely, except the eyes and
top of the head. Probably they often resort to this manoeu-
vre when approached by the large fish which feed upon them.
Fishes of Brookhaven, L. I. 259
I have found the two dorsals of this species numbering for fin
rays 10 — 14 ; in others, 10 — 13 ; and once 9 — 15 ; in one
instance I found the pectorals giving 14 on one side of the fish,
and 15 on the other, thus affording fair exemplifications of the
remarks made while speaking of the Perca Jiavescens.
COTTUS VARIABILIS. Nobis.
This species, which I believe, is as yet undescribed, is not
common. They are seen around wharves, &c., in the har-
bors, and I have known them, in one or two instances, taken
in the Sound. The largest one I have seen was six and a
half inches in length.
Gasterosteus Noveboracensis. Cuv.
The NeiD York Stickleback is very common in Old Man's
Harbor, in the parts least affected by the running of the tide.
They live chiefly among the eel-grass, but I have taken the
young ones swimming in companies near the surface in clear
water.
Gasterosteus millepunctatus. Nobis.
In similar situations with the last. This is perhaps the most
abundant species in the harbor ; it appears as yet undescribed.
I have specimens, taken from the freshwater of the Connec-
ticut River, on the south side of the island, which differ from
these only in being a little stouter, and perhaps a trifle darker
in color,
Otolithus regalis. Cuv.
Fifteen or twenty years ago, the Weak-Fish were abund-
ant in the Sound, and were taken readily with the hook ; now,
however, they have almost entirely disappeared. Only strag-
glers are caught with the nets, and they are small : the largest
I have met with weighed only about a pound and a half. On
the south side of the island they are more common, and are
occasionally found of ten or twelve pounds weight.
Umbrina nebulosa. Mitch.
The King-Fish is not uncommon, being often caught in
the nets; and in certain situations they bite very readily. I
do not consider them equal in flavor to many other of our
260 Ayres' Enutneration of the
species : by some persons, however, they are very highly es-
teemed.
POGONIAS GIGAS. Mitch.
The fishermen have told me, that about ten years since the
Drum-Fish made their appearance in the Sound, but remain-
ed only a short time. On the south side they are often
caught.
ScoLOPsiDES Sayanus. Gilliams.
This species appears to be rare ; I have met with it in but
one stream — the Connecticut. In general, it lies hid among
the grass, with which the river abounds, and is seldom seen
except when started from its hiding place. It is described in
the fourth volume of the Journal of the Academy of Natural
Sciences.
Sargus ovis. Mitch.
The Sheeps-head is now very rare, much more so than for-
merly. In three years I have been unable to obtain a single
specimen, though I have seen one or two while fishing. In
the South Bay, near Fire Island Inlet, they are still taken in
some numbers, and a few also in Gardiner's Bay, near the end
of the Island.
Pagrus argyrops. Lin.
The P or gee is in general very abundant through the sum-
mer, and takes the hook readily : they are caught in great
numbers, and are much used as food. With few exceptions,
they do not exceed nine inches in length ; and in September
I have seen hundreds of young ones, not more than two inches
long, brought in at one haul of the net. They arrived the
last season about the first of June, and remained till October.
The dorsal fin-rays of this species I have found to be some-
times 25, and sometimes 26 ; Dr. Storer states them at 24,
Dr. Mitchill at 26.
Scomber vernalis. Mitch.
Several years ago this Mackerel appeared in the Sound and
for a few weeks was very abundant on the north side of the
Fishes of Brookhaveti^ L. I. 261
Island ; but the occurrence was only accidental, as they have
not been seen there since.
Cybium maculatum. Mitch.
I consider this species one of the rarest of those which I
have met with ; several years frequently pass without one
being seen. Such had been the case for the last few years,
but this season no less than four were taken in the nets drawn
for Blue-fish ; I could obtain but one of them ; it was twenty
and a half inches in length. The fishermen call them Horse
Mackerel and Spanish Mackerel. Dr. MitchilPs figure of
the species is very correct.
Temnodon saltator. Cuv.
No fish is more highly prized by the fishermen, or of more
importance to them, than the Blue-fish. They are very abund-
ant, and are taken with nets, in great numbers, sometimes
three or four hundred at one haul. The greater part are sold
while fresh, though a few barrels are salted every year. They
may be caught also very readily with the hook, and, provided
the bait is only in motion, it matters but very little of what it
consists. I have used most commonly, and with very great
success, a hollow cylinder of bone, about four inches in length.
The average weight of the fish taken is not far from a pound
and a half; few are found exceeding two pounds, and the
largest one I have met with weighed about three and a half.
On the south side they are sometimes caught, weighing 12 or
14 pounds. Their chief food, on their first arrival, and for
the greater part of the summer, is the Sand-Launce ; later in
the season they feed on the Spearings {Atherina BoscH,)
the small species of Herrings, and on Shrimps. They sel-
dom, however, commence feeding on Shrimps till just before
their departure in October. The first were caught this sea-
son, June 26th. When in their prime, which is in August
and September, the flesh of this species is superior in rich-
ness and flavor to that of any other fish inhabiting our waters,
excepting perhaps, the Sheeps-head ; their abundance, how-
ever, renders their market price less than that of others which
are much inferior.
262 Ayres' Enumeration of the
Vomer setapinnis. Mitch.
The only specimen of this species that I have seen, I pick-
ed up dead, upon the beach, Nov. 21, 1840 ; it had apparently
just been left by the tide, and was very little injured. It
agrees well with Dr. MitchilPs description of the Zeus seta-
pinnis ; his figure, however, gives too little depth compared
with the length ; Swainson's figure of the Argyriosus Mau-
riceii more nearly resembles my specimen in its form. The
species must be, I suppose, very rare.
Peprilus triacanthus. Peck.
Though not uncommon, according to Dr. Storer, on the
coast of Massachusetts, this species is, in the waters of Long
Island, very rare. May 22d, 1841, I saw three of them, of
which I succeeded in taking one. The fish is scarcely known
to the fishermen, though one or two of them told me that
they had seen it.
Atherina Bosch. Cuv.
The Atherina notata of Mitchill, A. Boscii of Cuvier, is a
species rather abundant through the summer. They arrive in
the harbor in May, and remain till November ; and I have
picked them up on the beach, driven ashore by storms, through
the whole winter. They form no small amount of food for
the Blue-fish and Basse, and may be used with success as bait
for either.
LopHius piscATORius. Liu. *
The Fishing-Frog- is very rare ; I have met with but one
specimen and heard of another. The one which I saw (Dec.
28th, 1840) had been left by the tide on the meadows of the
harbor ; it was in length about fortythree inches.
Batrachus variegatus. Le Sueur.
The Toad-Fish is not uncommon; during the warm
weather they lie hid among the eel-grass, and are seldom seen.
One which I caught the last summer, and kept for some time,
would snap very fiercely at the finger or a stick held towards
him, and would sometimes allow himself to be lifted out of
Fishes of Brookhaven, L. I. 263
the water before he would loose his hold. On the approach
of cold weather, they bury themselves in the mud and re-
main torpid ; and are very frequently brought up with the
spear while striking in the mud for eels. One was brought to
me which had been taken in this manner, Oct. 27th, 1840 ;
it was torpid and lived nearly twentyfour hours without water.
Labrus am eric anus. Bloch.
The Black-Fish is here less common than in most parts of
the Sound, owing doubtless to the absence of rocky bottom
and shores. Those which I have met with are also of infe-
rior size, the largest I have seen weighing but little over two
pounds. Toward the east end of the island, at Sagharbor
and Greenport, and in Gardiner's Bay, they are much more
numerous.
Crenilabrus burgall. Schoepp.
Here, as on other parts of the coast, the Burgall is ex-
tremely abundant. They are seen as early as the middle of
May, and remain till the last of October, and in storms are
washed up on the beach of the Sound, through the whole
winter. Among their numerous varieties of color, I, the last
season, saw several specimens which had their entire surface
banded with alternate vertical lines of black and light brown,
presenting an appearance so singular, that at first I supposed
them to be of a distinct species. T have found the dorsal fin
rays sometimes 18 — 10, at others 18 — 11 and at still others
17—11.
Leuciscus chrysoleucas. Mitch.
This fish I have received from the Peconic river, near Riv-
erhead, and am not aware that it is found in any other of the
streams on the island.
FuNDULUs Fuscus. Ayres.
I have met with this Fundulus, only in the Connecticut ;
it appears to be somewhat uncommon there, living chiefly
among the grass with which the river abounds. The species
is, I believe, undescribed.
264 Ayres' Fishes of L. I.
Lebias ellipsoides. Le Sueur.
This fish, described by Le Sueur from specimens received
from Florida, is found in Old Man's Harbor, though never in
great numbers. They make their appearance in May, and
are at that season of the year commonly seen in pairs, in the
shallow creeks of the harbor. Their motions are very pecu-
har ; owing to the thick and almost inflexible structure of
their body ; the only parts available for swimming are the cau-
dal fin and the extreme posterior portion connected with it.
These are vibrated with great rapidity, and the movements of
the fish appear consequently to be performed with much vig-
or, though their speed is rather small. They are tyrannical
in their disposition, attacking and pursuing whatever other
species come near them. The back of the male presents re-
flections like those of polished steel, and when exposed to the
rays of the sun in clear water, their appearance is very brill-
iant. Le Sueur in his description, which in other points is
most beautifully accurate, says, that the ventrals extend to the
anal. This cannot be relied on ; I have one specimen in
which they extend so as to touch the anal, another, in Avhich
they extend nearly to it, and others in which they reach hard-
ly half the distance from their origin to the origin of the anal.
His conjecture, as to the scales on the operculum, is correct ;
they exist, but are very deciduous. His description must have
been drawn from a full grown specimen. The young of this
species is MitchilPs Esox ovinus ; it difiers from the adult in
color (being lighter) and possibly also in being a little more
plump and rounded. It, however, shows plainly the remark-
able teeth which characterize the genus. The only point in
which it does not agree with Dr. Mitchill's account of the L.
ovinus is in respect to the lateral line ; he says, this is plain
and straight ; these fish show no traces of any lateral line
whatever, in which they agree with Mitchill's figure.
[To be Continued.]
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J-l.X.
TOIL, IV,
P1-H.
BOSTON
JOURNAL OF NATURAL HISTORY.
CONTAINING
PAPERS AND COMMUNICATIONS,
BEAD BEFORE THE
Boston jSocictij of Natural Qxstovu,
AND PUBLISHED BY THEIR DIRECTION.
VOL. IV.— NO. 3.
PUBLISHING COMTIITTEE.
AMOS BLNNEY, 1 AUGUSTUS A. GOULD,
THADDET^S W. HARRIS, D. HUMPHREYS STORER,
CHARLES K. DILLAWAY.
BOSTON:
CHARLES C. LITTLE AND JAMES BROWN.
1843.
PRINTED BY FREEMAN AND BOLLES.
CONTENTS OF VOL. IV. NO. III.
Art. XXTII. — Enumeration of the Fishes of Brookhaven, Long Island,
with Remarks upon the Species Observed. By William 0. Ayres. 265
Art. XXIV. — Descriptions of Four Species of Fish from Brookhaven,
Long Island, all of which are believed to be new. By William O. Ayres. 293
Art. XXV. — Descriptions of the Fishes of the Ohio River and its tribu-
taries. By Jared P. Kirtland, M. D 303
Art. XXVI. — Catalogue of the Marine, Fluviatile and Terrestrial Shells
of the State of Maine and adjacent Ocean. By J. W. Mighels, M. D. 308
Art. XXVII. — Descriptions of Six Species of Shells Regarded as New.
By J. W. Mighels, M. D 345
Art. XXVIII. — Monograph of the Species of Pupa found in the United
States ; with Figures. By Augustus A. Gould, M. D. . . . 350
Art. XXIX. — Descriptions of Two Undescribed Species of North Amer-
ican Helices. By Amos Binney 360
Art. XXX. — Observations on the External Characters and Habits of the
Troglodytes Niger, Geoff. By Thomas S. Savage, M. D., Corresponding
Member of the Boston Society of Natural History — and on its Organi-
zation, by Jeffries Wyman, M. D . 362
BOSTON
JOURNAL OF NATURAL HISTORY.
Vol. IV. APRIL, 1843. No. 3.
Art. XXIII. — ENU:\IERATI0N OF THE FISHES OF BROOKHAVEN,
LOx\G ISLAND, WITH REMARKS UPON THE SPECIES OBSERVED.
By Willia3i O. Ayres, of East Hartford, Connecticut.
(Continued from page 264.)
MuGIL LINEATUS. Mitch.
Plate XII. Fig. 1.
A DESCRIPTION of this spccies with a figure, was prepared
for insertion in its regular order in the last number of this
journal. The engraving of the figure, however, could not be
completed in season, and the whole was omitted, with the
intention that it should appear in the present number. The
recent publication of Dr. Dekay's Report on the Fishes of
New York, in which this species is described and figured,
renders any further account unnecessary, and my description
is accordingly suppressed. As the figure, however, was en-
graved on the same plate with that of other species, it must
appear with them. This species appears to be somewhat
uncommon in Brookhaven ; I have seen them in but a few
instances, and then not in very great numbers. They are
seldom larger than the one figured.
Lebias ellipsoides. Le Sueur.
Since the publication of the last number of the Journal 1
have had the opportunity of examining numerous living spe-
34
266 Ayres' Enwneraiton of the
cimens of this species. I find that the lateral line, though by
no means conspicuous, can be traced without difficulty run-
ning in nearly a straight course to the caudal fin. So that in
the only point in which there appeared to be any discrepancy
between our fish and Mitchill's Esox ovinus, there is in fact a
perfect coincidence. When the specimen, however, has been
kept in alcohol for a time, this lateral fine becomes almost
imperceptible ; it was from a too careless examination of the
living fish that my former error arose.
Dr. Dekay, in his recently published Report on the Fishes
of New York, calls this fish Lebias ovinus, placing ellipsoides
among the extra-limital species. This appears to me unne-
cessary. I am unable to see in what Le Sueur's account dif-
fers from our northern fish, or from the description and figure
given by Dr. Dekay. The only point of the slightest variation
is in the shape of the caudal fin. Le Sueur says, " caudal
mostly unequal, enlarged and elongated posteriorly and ob-
liquely." Dr. Dekay says, " caudal fin nearly even." So
that the only difference is a difference of degree in this ine-
quality. I have never seen any in which the caudal fin was
so much uneven as in Le Sueur's figure ; but this, entirely
unsupported by any other character, seems to me not sufficient
to separate the species.
Mitchill's description was published before that of Le Sue^r,
but as the former was imperfect and drawn from the young
fish, while the latter gave us a complete representation 'of the
adult, I judged it better to adopt the name given by Le Sueur.
Perhaps in this I was wrong, and according to the rule of
priority the name ovinus should be retained, but we scarcely
need both ovinus and ellipsoides.
Hydrargira fasciata. Schn.
This I regard as the Esox pisciculus of Dr. Mitchill, but
not his Esox zoiiatus, which is incorrectly referred to it by
Cuvier. Both this and the following species are subject to
changes in color which can be learned only by watching them
at different seasons of the year. Dr. Mitchill says that the
abdomen of this fish is yellow ; it is a brilliant golden yellow
Fishes of Brookhaven^ L. I. 267
in June and July, (at which time, being its spawning season,
all its other colors are in the greatest perfection), but during
the rest of the year the abdomen is white. The species may,
however, be at all times distinguished by the light colored
vertical bands on its sides, and by its dorsal fin being marked
with oblique, waving hues, alternately light and dark.
Hydrargira pisculenta. Mitch.
This species is even more variable than the last. Dr.
Mitchill's description was taken from one of rather large size,
in which the sides are plain olive green, while the fish is alive.
As we descend to those a little smaller, black vertical bands
appear, which become more apparent in still smaller speci-
mens, until at the length of an inch we have Mitchill's Esox
zonatus, which is simply the young of the j^isculenta. On the
approach of cold weather this and the preceding species {fas-
ciata) leave the other parts of Old Man's Harbor and gather
in immense numbers in one or two narrow creeks. In January
and February, 1841, I found them in one of these places
collected so densely, that when the tide left them, nothing
was visible but a mass of fish completely concealing the whole
muddy bed of the creek. On dipping a common hand-net
among them, I have repeatedly taken up more than three
thousand of them at once ; they were nearly torpid with the
cold, but still able to swim.
The great tenacity of life in this and the kindred species is
certainly well worthy of remark. They are capable of re-
maining out of the water four hours without receiving any
apparent injury. On being replaced after such a time, they
swim about with as much ease as though they had never been
removed, and give, by their motions, no token of being in
pain. The only species in which I have observed this, are
jnsculenta, fasciaia, and multifasciata ; it is, however, very
probably common to the whole genus.
Hydrargira flavula. Mitch.
The jlavula is much less common than the last two species,
34*
268 Ayres^ Enumeration of the
and, with solitary exceptions, is not seen during the winter.
The longitudinal bands upon this fish I do not find to present
a character by any means constant. They are very variable
in their number, and in young specimens are not found at all.
I have seen very many in which no traces of them could be
discerned, and in these the whole side is commonly marked
with bright vertical black bands. In others one longitudinal
line is partly developed, and in others still, one line complete
and the rudiments of another, and thus increasing till we
reach four complete lines, which are commonly found only in
full grown specimens. But even when these lines are want-
ing, there is no danger of confounding the species with jyiscu-
lenta. The vertical bands are always brighter, the color of
the fish is lighter, and the shape of the head is different.
I have thus mentioned the only three species of Hydrar-
gira which I was able to find on the island, and which I am
inclined to believe are the only species occurring on the coast
of New York. In this I am confirmed by Dr. Mitchill and
Dr. Dekay. They both describe these three species and no
others ; by Dr. Dekay, however, they are placed in the genus
Fundidus, and he gives them different specific names. In this
I think he is in error. I have called them by Mitchill's names
because they agree in all points with his descriptions, and as
they were found in waters neighboring to those in which his
specimens were collected, I saw no reason to doubt thjjt they
were actually his species. Dr. Dekay, however, has described
two of them as new. His Fimdulus zehra is what I have
called Hydrargira fasciata. His jP, viridescens is identical
with H. pisculenta ; it appears to me he is decidedly wrong
in saying his viridescens may be Mitchill's Esox piscicidus.
" Sides marked by parallel pale or yellowish narrow zones,"
does not at all correspond with Dr. Dekay's description. His
zebi'a is what I regard as Mitchill's piscicidus.
His F. fasciatus is the one here mentioned as H. Jlavula.
In applying the niime fasciata to M'lichiW s pisciculus I followed
McMurtrie's Cuvier, and was perhaps led into error. Dr. De-
kay quotes Valenciennes and applies the same name to flavidus.
Fishes of Brookhaven^ L. I. 269
As to the genus Hydrargira I cannot forbear a few remarks.
There are several of our small fishes which we are not able to
include in any of the genera mentioned by Cuvier, as Fundu-
lus, Pcecilia, &c. They form an exceedingly natural group,
and as that group had been distinguished by Le Sueur under
the generic name Hydrargira I saw no reason for not adopt-
ing it. To that group the three species here mentioned be-
long. Dr. Dekay has retained the genus Hydrargira, though
he speaks of it as defective, and if the genus is retained,
these species seem to me necessarily included in it. They
certainly must be placed with midtifasciata, which in the pe-
culiar form of the mouth, teeth in the throat, &c., agrees en-
tirely with them ; and this multifasciata is by Dr. Dekay still
called Hydrargira.
Esox RETicuLATUs. Lc Sucur.
The pickerel, incorrectly called Esox lucius by Dr. Mitchill,
is very abundant in the ponds and streams on the south side
of the island, but is commonly of small size, those of half a
pound weight being very rare ; in Great Pond, however, they
are found much larger.
I examined these pickerel with much care, and was unable
to perceive sufficient differences to warrant my considering
them distinct from Le Sueur's reticulatus ; and this opinion I
have not since found occasion to alter. Dr. Dekay has given
a very fine figure of them, and described them under the
name fasciatus. Of this I cannot see the necessity or propri-
ety ; for though by taking two extreme instances of this fish
and a larger pickerel, a pound weight for instance, we may
find differences apparently enough to prove them distinct, yet
the interval between the two is filled up by others which so
blend together that no line of separation can be drawn. In
the smaller fish we find the part of the head anterior to the
eyes proportionally shorter, tlie body often deeper and com-
monly the colors darker. But, as before remarked, these
characters are by no means permanent. As we examine other
specimens we find the head become longer, and the body
270 Ayres' Enumeration of the
more slender, while the colors vary exceedingly. In this latter
respect particularly, the differences are very striking. I have
seen some which were of a fine, light, olive green above, with
five or six broad bars of the same descending on the side ;
others which were almost entirely black on the back and
sides ; others which had the colors as in Dr. Dekay's figure ;
and others which were reticulated like the larger pickerel.
Yet all had the black vertical band at the eye distinctly
marked. July 27, 1842, I had an extensive series of these
fish before me, and after a very careful examination of them
I could not but feel convinced that they were identical with
Le Sueur's reticulatus, I have never found any in which the
position of the ventral fins perfectly agreed with Dr. Dekay's
figure, but the difference has been very slight, and apparently
not sufficient to be of any value as a specific character.
It may be urged that the size to which these pickerel are
limited, is a strong argument against their being of the same
species with the larger fish of our ponds and streams. But
if we proceed on this principle we shall be forced to separate
fish whose identity has never been questioned, and apparently
can never be. The small size of the pickerel is not peculiar
to Long Island. There are one or two places in Connecticut
in which the same thing occurs. In one of these places the
difficulty appears to be a want of suitable food ; in the others
the food is abundant.
But let us take one or two similar cases. It is well known
that our common trout (^Salmo fontinalis, Mitch.) sometimes
attains the weight of four or five pounds. Why then in our
smaller streams do we find the very great majority only six or
seven inches long, while one of a pound weight is considered
very uncommon ? It cannot be the effect of age ; for they
«
are often prevented by dams from descending, and must of
course remain in the stream during their whole lives. Neither
does it seem to be from a deficiency of food, for of that they
obtain an abundance.
But to be more definite still, let us refer to Mr. Carman's
pond at Fireplace, Long Island. In the pond a trout of a
Fishes of Brookhnvefi. L. I. 271
pound is considered large, most of those taken being less than
this ; below the pond, in the stream which runs from it, a
trout of less than two pounds is not counted of the average
size, while those of three, four, and five pounds are frequently
taken. Why is this ? It may be said that in the pond there
must be a deficiency of food ; well, if so it should be remem-
bered that this is one of the places in which we find the small
'pickerel. But I can scarcely believe that want of food causes
the difference. It certainly appears to me that the pond af-
fords a supply fully as abundant as that to be obtained in the
one next above on the same stream, which is the property of
James Weeks, Esq. And yet this latter has always been
noted for the great size of its trout ; a few years since seven-
teen were taken in it in one day which weighed thirty-four
pounds.
Let us take another species, Perca flavescens. M. In the
Hockanum River, which enters the Connecticut a little below
Hartford, _per67i are very abundant, but so far as I am aware
one weighing more than a pound has never been taken there ;
and yet probably no stream affords the food of the perch in
greater profusion. In other apparently less favored places,
however, perch are often found of two or three pounds.
Again, on the north shore of Brookhaven, Long Island, a
black-Jish {Tautoga americana, Bloch) of two pounds is es-
teemed large, while beyond the weight of five pounds they are
entirely unknown ; yet in the Vineyard Sound they are taken
of fourteen or fifteen pounds.
It appears, therefore, that a difference in size alone is not
sufficient for a distinguishing specific character, even though
we may be unable to account for the difference.
Before leaving this species I cannot forbear making the fol-
lowing mention of a specimen which, though it had no con-
nection with Long Island, is yet worthy of being recorded on
account of its great size.
Feb. 28, 1842, I examined a pickerel which had been
caught in a net in the Hockanum River, about two miles east
of Hartford, Conn.; it was an undoubted reticulatus of Le
272 Ayres' Enumeration of the
Sueur. It was thirty-eight inches in length, and weighed
fourteen pounds. In its stomach was found a dace (Leuciscus
pulcheUus, Storer) ten inches long. This is the largest in-
stance of this species which has ever come under my own ob-
servation, and with one exception the largest of which I have
ever heard as occurring in the Eastern States. That one was
taken in the spring of 1842, near Greenfield, Mass., and
weighed twenty pounds.
Dr. Kirkland says, however, that the "pickerel of Ohio are
taken occasionally four feet in length, which would make their
weight much greater than that of either of those above-men-
tioned. V
Belone truncata. Le Sueur.
I had been two years on the island before I was aware of
the existence there of the garfish, which, however, is not at
all uncommon in Old Man's Harbor. The reason was, that
they are never or very seldom seen by day ; my first knowl-
edge of them was derived from men who were in the habit of
spearing eels by firelight. During the day they lie hid in the
eel-grass and seek their food only in the night, at which time
the specimens in my possession were caught. Their food
consists of small fish.
This species sometimes ascends rivers, many miles above
the reach of salt water. In August, 1842, I saw seven or
eight at different times in the Connecticut river, near Hart-
ford ; one I succeeded in obtaining.
PiMELODUs CATus. Lin.
The horned pout is found in Great Pond, and Peconic
river ; it is called there bullhead and catfish. I have followed
Dr. Dekay in adopting the specific name given by Linnseus,
in place of Le Sueur's nebulosus.
Salmo fontinalis. Mitch.
The trout, for which the streams and ponds of Long Island
are famous, are often taken of very considerable size ; those of
Fishes of BrooJxhaven^ L. I. 273
three or four pounds are not uncommon ; and eight or ten
years since a trout was caught at Fireplace, whicli weighed
fifteen pounds. It must, I suppose, have been this species.
It was called by many who saw it a salmon trout, on account
of its great size or perhaps some peculiarity in the coloring,
but the most experienced fisherman who was engaged in taking
it (it was caught with a seine) considered it only a very large
individual of the common hrook trout. I may here remark,
that on that stream, and possibly in other parts of the island,
the name sahnoii trout is often applied to any specimen very
strongly tinged with red on the abdomen, and it may have
been so in this instance.
I am unable to perceive any necessity for the genus Baione
which Dr. Dekay has separated. Even if I had never seen
the fish, and judged merely from his description, the genus
would appear to me not needed. His characters are as fol-
low : " A range of even teeth on the maxillaries ; a shorter
range on the intermaxillaries and the anterior part of the
vomer. A series of long recurved teeth around the margin
of the tongue. Branchial rays ten. Adipose fin posterior to
the anal. Scales microscopic." Now the whole of this so
far as ^' margin of the tongue," that is, all which relates to
the teeth, applies in the most minute particular to salmo.
" Branchial rays ten ; " but in salmo we find the branchial
rays " more thaneight," which certainly may mean " ten,"
without any violence to the language. The number of rays,
however, here given by Dr. Dekay, seems peculiarly unfortu-
nate, for in his own specific description, he says, '' branchial
rays ten and eleven on opposite sides." With what propriety,
then, does he introduce " ten " as a generic character ? Again,
"adipose fin posterior to the anal;" surely this is of small
importance in marking a genus, but such as it is, we may
afford to give it its full value, for it is the only difference to
be found. " Scales microscopic ; " this is true, but it is of no
weight, for scarcely one of our American trout and salmon can
be mentioned, in which, when the specimens are of no greater
size than this little fish, (two inches in length), the scales are
not microscopic.
274 Ayres' Enumeration of the
I think Dr. Dekay is not only in error in attempting to
establish this as a new genus, but he has simply described the
young of a species already well known. " The orbits large "
and '' eyes very large in proportion to the size of the fish ; "
these, of themselves, give us partial proof that the fish is im-
mature, for in such cases the eyes are, almost invariably, very
large in proportion to the size of the head and of the body.
But, fortunately, we are not left to judge merely from the
description. This haione ! is very common ; it is found in
great numbers in many streams in Connecticut, and doubtless
in other states also, wherever the adult fish occurs. By a
somewhat singular coincidence. Dr. Dekay has applied to his
haione a specific name {fontinaUs) which will not need to be
changed. When we restore it to the old genus, it will be
Salmo fontinalis, Mitch. ; or in other words, the baione is
simply the young of the common brook trout.
The spots on the side represented in Dr. Dekay's figure,
and which often remain distinctly visible on our trout till the
fish are six or seven inches long, Mr. Yarrell says he has rea-
son to believe are common to all the species of the genus
Salmo in the earlier stages of their growth.
Comparing carefully Dr. Dekay's two descriptions of Salmo
fontinalis and Baione fontinalis, the only differences I can find
are in the rays of the dorsal fin, and in the color. He says,
in the trout these rays are thirteen, and in the haione eight.
But of the latter the rays are " so far cloven down as to ren-
der them difficult to enumerate ; " and is it not possible that
in a fish so very small, the number of the rays was not ascer-
tained with perfect correctness ? As to the colors, the de-
scription of the troutlet applies perfectly to the young of the
trout. Of the vertical bands mention has already been made.
From the descriptions therefore, and from an examination of
recent specimens, I cannot come to any other conclusion than
the one given above ; that is, that the haione is only the young
of Salmo fontinalis.
SCOPELUS HUMBOLDTll? CuV.
I introduce this species, though with doubt of its occur-
Fishes of Brookhaven^ L. I. 275
rence. October 31, 1840, I picked up on the beach a fish
which had been rolled and chafed by the tide, and which I am
consequently unable to determine with certainty. Apparently
it is the species here mentioned.
Clupea minima. Peck.
Early in the fall, commonly by the first of September, a
small species of herring arrives in the Sound in great numbers,
which is, I think, the brit. It does not agree altogether with
Dr. Storer's description, or with any other which 1 can find,
still it does not appear advisable at present to separate it as a
distinct species. It is the only one of the genus, of which I
was able to learn anything during a residence of three yeari
on the island.
Alosa mattowacca. Mitch.
This species, called by the fishermen, green bade, is com-
mon during the latter part of the season, arriving sometimes
by the last of August. They are caught in numbers in the
nets drawn for bluejish and basse, and are used for food,
though very bony.
I am gratified to perceive that the fish, which from Dr.
Mitchill's brief description I had supposed to be his Clupea
mattoivacca, has been described by Dr. Dekay under that spe-
cific name. He has given us a very good description, accom-
panied by an excellent figure.
Alosa menhaden. Mitch.
On the north shore of Brookhaven, for the last few years,
this fish has been found in but comparatively small numbers,
but at the east end of the island and on the south side they
come in boundless multitudes. They are almost exclusively
used for manure, though occasionally they are eaten. The
nets employed in catching them, at the east end of the island
particularly, are of very great length, and a million have been
taken at a single haul. The number noticed by Dr. Dekay
(168,000) would not be considered an uncommonly large
276 Ayres' Enumeration of the
haul. The price which he mentions is too great ; they are
often sold for fifty cents a thousand.
MORRHUA PRUINOSA. Mitch.
The tomcod is exceedingly rare, though on the north side
of the sound it is common. The only specimen I obtained in
Brookhaven was picked up on the beach. I am very happy to
have it in my power to mention this species under a better
name than '' tomcodus,^^ which it has borne so long. The one
adopted by Dr. Dekay (pruinosa) appears well selected and
entirely unobjectionable.
MeRLUCIUS VULGARIS. CuV.
February 1, 1841, I picked up on the beach a small speci-
men of this fish ; it is the only one I have seen.
Phycis americanus? Schn.
It is with much hesitation that 1 introduce the name of
this species. I have three specimens, all of which were
picked up on the beach during the winter of 1841 and 1842 ;
the largest is only about three inches in length. They differ
much from the account given of the Americanus, but as I am
acquainted with that species only through descriptions, and
these apparent differences may arise merely from the size of
my specimens, I do not venture at present to consider my fish
distinct.
Platessa plana. Mitch.
The flat-Jish is very abundant in the harbor during the whole
year, though in the winter they are not seen, having then re-
tired into the mud and become torpid. They begin to move
in the spring, commonly in April, but on their first appear-
ance they are very little esteemed ; during the summer they
are commonly taken with the spear. They are often found
buried in the sand so completely that the only parts of them
visible are their eyes. They are then apparently watching for
their prey, of small fish, among which the sand launccs are
perhaps most frequently taken by them.
Fishes of Bi'ooLhaven^ L. I. 277
Pleuronectes maculatus. Mitch.
As the name Rhombus cannot be retained in this family, I
follow Dr. Dekay in adopting the old name Pleuronectes, to
designate the same genus. The present species, called by the
fishermen sand-Jlounder, is somewhat common in the sound
during summer, but is comparatively rare in the harbor.
Their habits and food are much hke those of the j^a^-y?5/i.
One which I had examined, had swallowed two large sand-
launces, one small hydrargira, and more than a dozen shrimps.
They are remarkable for their semi-transparent appearance,
and on account of their thinness, and consequent small weight,
are seldom eaten. They are often taken in the nets, but are
commonly neglected by the fishermen. This is not the spe-
cies described by Dr. Storer under the udnne Rhombus aquosus,
and considered bv him to be identical with the Pleuronectes
aquosus, (or more correctly maculatus) of Mitchill. I think he
was in error, and that the error arose from his not having
seen Mitchill's species. On Long Island both are found, and
to one examining the true aquosus, the difference from Dr.
Storer's description is at once manifest. The proportions of
length and breadth given in the two descriptions show us two
fish of very different shapes ; the difference in size also is
great. But in treating of the next species I propose to exhibit
the points of contrast between the two; my* largest specimen
of Mitchill's maculatus, to which some reference will be made,
is ten and a quarter inches in length.
Dr. Dekay has given a most admirable figure of this spe-
cies, and a good description ; he calls it maculatus, and gives
as a synonym, aquosus of Storer. But how he could recon-
cile the two accounts, I cannot imagine. Indeed the ditfer-
ences were so apparent, that he could not overlook them.
He says, " I cannot reconcile the radial formula of my own,
and other describers ; " and again, " has been known to
weigh twenty pounds." I have never seen them, except in
two instances, larger than the dimensions stated above, (five
inches in length). These discrepancies, however, are very
278
Ayres' Enumeration of the
easily explained, if we suppose Dr. Dekay and Dr. Storer re-
ferring, as appears almost certain, to two distinct species.
Pleuronectes
This is the fish considered by Dr. Storer to be the Pleuro-
nectes aquosus of Mitchill ; the differences of the two we will
now consider.
Pleuronectes aquosus Mitch.
" Measured nine inches from nose
to tail, and when the dorsal and anal
fins were expanded, five and three
quarters across.*' In my specimen,
length ten and three quarters,
breadth, exclusive of the fins, five
and a quarter.
" Another of the largest magni-
tude, was eleven inches long,
55
" Eyes yellowish ; " in my speci-
mens, eyes bright yellow.
Lower jaw the longer in my
specimens; "teeth small, though
sharp."
" Dorsal fin commences between
the right eye, and the upper lip."
In my largest specimen, the dorsal
rises four-tenths of an inch anterior
to the orbit of the upper eye, and
one-fourth of an inch posterior to the
point of the upper jaw.
The rays of the anterior part of
the dorsal, are free for nearly half
of their length, presenting a digitate
appearance. Mitchill's figure in
this respect is inaccurate.
Length of caudal rays, in my spe-
cimen, two and three-tenths inches,
making the proportionate length for
a fish of eighteen inches, nearly
three and eight-tenths.
Fin rays, " D. C5 ; A. 54."
Rhoinbus aquosus. Storer.
" Length of the fish eighteen
inches, depth across the middle, ex-
clusive of the fins, seven inches.
" Specimens have been caught
the last season weighing twenty
pounds."
" Irides silvery."
" Jaws equal in length, and
armed with a single row of sepa-
rated, quite large, sharp teeth."
" The dorsal fin arises over the
anterior half of the orbit of the
eyes."
The corresponding rays are much
shorter, and but slightly free at their
extremities.
" Length of caudal rays, two and
a half inches," in a specimen eigh-
teen inches long.
Fin rays, " D. 89 ; A. 68."
The two fish appear thus, manifestly distinct. Of the
species recorded by Dr. Storer, I have been unable to find
any previously published description ; and as I cannot satisfy
myself, that it ought to be referred to any one of those de-
Fishes of Brookkaven^ L. I. 279
scribed by Dr. Dckay, I believe that it is as yet destitute of a
specific name. If this, however, shall prove to be true, the
conferring of the name belongs of right to the one by whom
the fish has been already most carefully and accurately de-
scribed.
The present species is not uncommon on Long Island, and
is often called the sea-jlounder.
AcHiRus MOLLIS. Mitch.
This fish is very rare ; I saw but three specimens during a
residence of three years on the island. It occasionally
ascends fresh water streams, as in October, 1841, a very fine
specimen was obtained near Hartford, Conn., forty miles from
salt water. It was presented to the Hartford Natural History
Society, by Mr. C. H. Olmstead, and is now in their col-
lection.
Anguilla bostoniensis. Le Sueur.
This eel, the only one which I was able to find on the
island, inhabits the creeks and bays in myriads ; a vast sup-
ply is sent from the South Bay to the New York markets.
On the approach of cold weather, commonly in November,
they retire into the mud and become torpid, remaining so till
May, in which condition many of them are caught with
spears. During the whole summer they are active, but much
more so by night than by day. Advantage is therefore often
taken of this habit to spear them by fire-light, and in this
manner great numbers are caught. Their food consists
chiefly of various small fish, for which they lie in wait, con-
cealed in the mud or eel-grass, and they in their turn, furnish
a large and excellent amount of food for the inhabitants of
the island.
This is unquestionably the species referred to by Dr. Mitch-
ill as the Anguilla vulgaris, though his description is very
short. It is with equal certainty the tenuirosiris of Dr. Dekay ;
but as Dr. Storer assures me that Dr. Dekay's species is identi-
cal with the common eel of Massachusetts, of course the name
280 Ayres' Enumeration of the
hosioniensis has the precedence. The species appears very
closely allied to the acutirostris of Yarrell. I subjoin the fol-
lowing notes taken from a specimen seventeen inches in
length. Color above dark olive green ; below white some-
what stained with yellow. The greatest circumference of the
body, near the origin of the dorsal fin, is three inches. The
pectorals arise at 2 1-10 inches from the point of the lower
jaw ; the dorsal at 5 6-10 ; and the anal at 7 1-10.
Is there not an error of the press in Dr. Storer's description
in substituting "pectorals" for ''dorsal?" "From the lip
of the snout to the base of the pectorals, eight inches" does
not seem to be in proper proportion to the length of the fish ;
but if in place of " pectorals " we insert the word " dorsal,"
the proportion is perfect.*
Ammodytes lancea. Cuv.
The sand-launce is met with in the Sound from the first of
May to the first of November, and, during the early summer
months more particularly, no other species occurs in such
boundless numbers. They constitute for some months the
chief food of the hliie-Jish and the basse, and are also eaten
largely by eels, flat-fish, gurnards and indeed almost every
species which is of sufficient size to destroy them. During
the stay of the cuttle fish {Loligo iJlecebrosa) in the harbor,
which is only three or four weeks in May, they also afford a
large amount of food for them. They are indeed almost in
the condition of the flying fish within the tropics, exposed to
numerous enemies from beneath and to no less certain and
perhaps as continual danger from above. For the terns,
which frequent this shore in great numbers, derive their chief
and probably we may say sole support from these sand-launces,
during the two months that they remain with us before pro-
ceeding north to rear their young. This species, though of
no direct use to man, is yet of great importance in aflfording
* Dr. Dekay has satisfied himself of the correctness of Dr. Storer's observations
upon this species by a personal examination of specimens in Boston market since
this paper was placed in the hands of the publishing committee. — Pub. Com.
Fishes of Brookhaven^ L. I. 281
support to those larger fish which from their size and flavor
are in demand for the table, and which yield us no small por-
tion of our food.
I have often watched with much pleasure the peculiar habits
of these fish, from which they derive their generic name. In
pushing my boat along the shallow creeks of the harbor, each
thrust of the setting-pole would send them darting forth from
their hiding places in the sand, so that where none were to be
seen before, the water would become suddenly alive with
them. They would in general spring rapidly forward for a
few yards or rods, and in an instant disappear in the sand.
They may be noticed also in companies of all numbers, from
one hundred to several thousands, swimming slowly backward
and forward in the creeks. On passing over a favorable spot
of sand, two or three will be seen separating from the main
body and inclining gently downward, as if selecting a spot for
entrance ; when near the bottom they dart forward, and,
striking the sand head-foremost, disappear instantly. Some-
times, however, when the sand is harder the impetus of their
plunge buries but little more than their head, and the body is
then forced in with a waving motion, one or two seconds being
occasionally consumed in effecting an entrance. I have often
noticed them, while swimming, partially coil their bodies and
strike upward as at some object in the water ; probably they
were then taking some one of the insects which constitute the
chief portion of their food.
I believe that this species is the lancea, and as Dr. Storer
has described the tohianus as occurring on the coast of Mas-
sachusetts, it is reasonable that I should give the grounds for
this belief. My notes and measurements are taken from a
specimen four and a half inches in length, which is the largest
one in my possession ; the largest one I ever saw was not
quite five and a half inches long.
One of the marks distinguishing the lancea from the tohia-
nus is the relative length of the head. Yarrell says " the
length of the head compared to the length of the fish is less
than as one to five ; " in my specimen the length from the tip
35
282 Ayres^ Enumeration of tJie
of the lower jaw to the posterior angle of the operculum is
seventeen twentieths, in tohianus the corresponding length
would be an inch. Again, " the posterior margin of the eye
is less than half way between the point of the lower jaw and
the posterior projecting angle of the gill-cover ; " the distance
from the posterior margin of the eye to the tip of the lower
jaw is decidedly, though slightly, less than the distance from
the same point to the angle of the operculum. " The dorsal
fin commencing in a hne over the middle of the pectoral
fin ; " the dorsal commences over the last third of the pecto-
ral. In Yarrell's account of the lancea the length of the pec-
torals is not mentioned, in tohianus it is said that their length
is one third of that of the head ; in my specimens their length
is half that of the head. The lower jaw is not so much elon-
gated as in the figure given of tohianus, agreeing in that re-
spect perfectly with the figure of lancea ; the size also is in
favor of the latter. I have examined very great numbers of
specimens, but have been unable to find more than one spe-
cies ; that species is, I believe, the lancea.
Dr. Dekay has described an Ammodytes which he calls
americanus, but it can scarcely be the present species. In his
characteristics he says " length six to twelve inches." But
perhaps this is not what it ought to be, for at the end of his
description he says, " length, 4.0 — 6.0." He does not
mention the length of the head, but the origin of the dor-
sal, the situation of the nostrils, the length of the pectorals
seem to indicate that it is not the species which I have called
lancea.
Syngnathus peckianus. Storer.
In the waters of the island I was able to find but one spe-
cies of Syngnathus ; that one is, I have no doubt, the j)ecJC'
ianus.
They commonly remain at the bottom among the eel-grass,
but in warm days they sometimes come to the surface ; at
such times I have taken them up with the hand without their
making any attempt to escape. July 3, 1840, several were
Fishes of Brookhaven^ L. I. 283
thus found, floating in a vertical position, with the head bent
at a right angle to the body so as to remain horizontal near the
surface. Three of them were males ; in one the abdominal
pouch was filled with eggs ; in another, with the young just
ready to be set at liberty ; while in the other the pouch was
almost empty, only very few of the young remaining in it.
These fish are sometimes caught in seines whose meshes
are more than an inch in diameter. This happens from their
habit of very frequently lying perfectly still when touched on
the side by any object which alarms them. The net strikes
them in this manner, and from the great length of their body,
reaching across many meshes, they are brought in by it,
though if they attempted to pass through, it would present to
them no obstacle whatever. When confined in a vessel of
water I have found them generally little inclined to move ;
but if aroused, their motions are exceedingly rapid.
This species is subject to very great variations in color. I
have seen some, especially small specimens, which were almost
perfectly black both above and beneath ; others which were
very light brown without bands ; and others which were
banded with dark brown. In some the abdomen is bright
yellow ; in others it is very light, almost white.
I have called this species peckianus ; I am perfectly confi-
dent that it is also the fasciatus and viridescens of Dekay. In
comparing the former with peckianus, Dr. Dekay says the
body of his species in front of the dorsal fin is heptangular ;
this is equally true of Dr. Storer's species ; '' head and ros-
trum proportionably longer ; " but this is by no means a con-
stant character, the head and rostrum vary very greatly in
length in fish of the same size. " The greatest depth of the
rostrum scarcely exceeding twice the greatest depth of the
head," evidently means nothing ; perhaps it is owing to an
error of the press. But not to confine ourselves to these few
points, the whole of Dr. Dekay's description is perfectly ap-
plicable to the species which I found on Long Island, and
which Dr. Storer says is his peckianus ; his figure also is a
very beautiful and perfect representation of the same fish.
35*
284 Ayres' Enumeration of the
And if fasciatus is a synonym for jpecManus, viridescens
must also be referred to the same, for it seems impossible to
point out any differences in the two descriptions given by Dr.
Dekay. Of his viridescens he says, " in recent specimens, it
is hexangular before the vent or anal fin ; but in cabinet spe-
cimens, a slight carina is observed in the middle of the belly."
Now this character is at the most of very slight value, for it is
far from being constant. In some instances the two series of
plates along the abdomen meet so as to form a strongly
marked angle, and of course the body is heptangular ; while
in others the two series are in the same plane and the body is
hexangular. I have specimens which show every gradation
from a very prominent angle to a perfectly flat surface. If
we take now the whole remaining part of Dr. Dekay's de-
scription, what was written for viridescens applies with equal
correctness to fasciatus. The number of plates, the carina
on the head, the eyes, the opercula, the jaws, the mouth, the
fins, the anal pouch all vary so slightly that I cannot regard
viridescens as even a variety oi pecTcianus. Dr. Dekay indeed
gives io fasciatus three more caudal rays than to viridescens,
but that is the greatest difference which I can find between
them. The colors as before remarked, are of very little im-
portance.
DioDON Maculato-striatus. Mitch.
I had described this as a new species, supposing that it was
distinct from Mitchill's fish, but since the appearance of Dr.
Dekay's report, I have been induced to suppress my descrip-
tion, for the fish is there recorded under the name given above.
How it can, however, possibly be Dr. Mitchill's species, I can-
not conceive, unless there are very great errors in his descrip-
tion. " Length four inches ; breadth about three ; " " eyes
two inches asunder " are very far from applying to my speci-
mens. But these proportions can scarcely be correct ; that a
fish of this family should have the breadth equal to three-
fourths of the length, and the distance between the eyes equal
to half the length, is almost impossible. There may be an
Fishes of Brookhaven^ L. I. 285
error of the press or in copying. But the color also differs
from my specimens and from Dr. Dekay's description, though
this is not of so much importance.
Dr. Dekay says the species is not rare ; but on the north
shore of Brookhaven it is very seldom seen. In three years I
was able to obtain but two specimens, and the fisliermen al-
ways spoke of it as an extremely rare fish. The only other
specimen I have ever seen, is in the cabinet of the Yale Natu-
ral History Society, New Haven ; it was probably taken some-
where in Connecticut.
The food of the species consists, in part at least, of crusta-
ceous animals ; the stomach of one of those which I procured,
contained fragments of what is commonly known as the spider-
crab or sea-spider (JLihinia canalicidaia, Say). Dr. Dekay
says, that the stomach of one which he examined was filled
with fragments of shells. That they feed much on fish is not
probable, their movements being too slow to allow of their
securinsf food of that kind.
The natatory bladder is uncommonly large and bifurcated
anteriorly, somewhat like that of a Batrachus, which, how-
ever, it greatly exceeds in its relative size.
Tetraodon turgidus. Mitch.
The swell-fish is very common, and frequently very trouble-
some in taking the bait used in fishing for hlackfish and por-
gees while their own flesh is considered of no value. They
arrive as early as the first of June and remain till October. I
have found the fin rays in this species differing almost con-
stantly. The most common number for the pectorals appears
to be sixteen ; in one instance I found them fifteen ; in another
seventeen ; in four specimens, fifteen in one pectoral and six-
teen in the other ; and in one instance, sixteen on one side
and seventeen on the other. The anal fin gives sometimes
seven rays, and at others eight ; Dr. Storer and Dr. Dekay say
that in the specimens described by them the number was six.
These fish possess, in a remarkable degree, the power of
changing their color at will. If alarmed while lying on the
286 Ayres' Enumeration of the
sand, at a time when they do not choose to escape by swim-
ming, they fade instantly so that they show no tints but a
dingy white scarcely distinguishable from the sand on which
they lie ; if the alarm ceases, their original color returns and
they are again easily discernible. Many other fish possess this
faculty, but I have not met with any species which equalled
the swell-fish in the extent and rapidity of the change.
This species, in common with the others of the genus, has
the power of inflating itself with air, or distending itself with
water. In regard to this habit, Cuvier and others have made
a most singular mistake. Yarrell quotes Dr. Roget in the
first volume of the Bridgewater Treatises as follows : '•' The
abdominal region being thus rendered the lightest^ the body
turns over, the stomach being the uppermost part, and the
fish floats upon its back, without having the power of directing
itself during this state of forced distention." How can such
an error have arisen ? Possibly it may have been from seeing
the fish only when out of the water. If after being caught,
and while still out of the water, it inflates itself, it then, being
filled with air, is of course lighter than the water, and if thrown
on the surface floats away with the back downward, until ex-
pelling the air it turns over and dives to the bottom. But
how different is the case when we consider the fish in its natu-
ral position, at the bottom, the situation contemplated in the
above quotation. If it then distends itself, whence is the air to
be derived which is to render the fish so light ? Has the fish
the power of mechanically separating it from the water which
contains it, so as to swallow the one and reject the other ?
The truth is, that if distended while beneath the water, they
are of course filled with water and not with air, so that their
specific gravity is neither increased nor diminished perceptibly.
Often, on catching them while fishing, I have held them in
my hand over the side of the boat so as to bring them some
inches beneath the surface ; and by irritating the abdomen
slightly with the fingers, they begin to distend themselves, and
soon become hard and round, as usual. If liberated in this
condition, they are able to swim, though more sluggishly than
Fishes of Brookhaven^ L. I. 287
at other times ; their first movement commonly is to come up
till their head is above the surface, when they spout out the
water in a continued stream, and being thus relieved, dive to
the bottom. And why is not the purpose, attributed to this
faculty by most naturalists, that of self-defence, as well se-
cured by a distention with water as by an inflation with air ?
The spines are equally erect and fixed, and the whole fish
presents to all outward observation the same appearance in
the one case as in the other. But that defence is really the
object appears by no means certain, and, in fact, rather im-
probable, from the slowness of the operation. In this species
eight or ten seconds is the shortest time in which it is com-
pleted, and it frequently consumes a minute or more, a period
far too great to be of service in affording security against a
danger so sudden as that of an attack from a larger fish.
Probably the true design of so singular a faculty is yet un-
known.
ACIPENSER OXYRHINCUS. Mitch.
This sturgeon is very common in the Sound during sum-
mer, arriving as early as the middle of June, and remaining
until October. They are most usually taken by harpooning
them, though many are caught in nets. Specimens not un-
frequently are seen seven or eight feet in length, but the
smaller ones are much more esteemed for the table.
Respecting the sharks, the account which I can give is, I
regret to say, very imperfect. They are, most of them, fish
which swim singly, are diflicult to take, and in some cases oc-
cur at any given place only once in the course of several
years ; so that a long time is requisite to determine what spe-
cies ought actually to be included. I saw but three during
my residence on Long Island, though I received information
in regard to several others. The three are all that I shall
notice here.
288 Ayres' Enumeration of the
Carcharias griseus. Ayres.
This shark I have met with in but one instance ; it was
taken in a net August 11, 1841.
It cannot, I think, be referred to any one of the species
described by Dr. Dekay, and I have been unable to find any
description with which it agrees. With its habits I am un-
acquainted.
MusTELus cANis. Mitch.
This is the most common, and in fact the only common,
species of this family found in these waters ; they are fre-
quently taken in nets drawn for other fish, though never, I
believe, more than one or two at a time. The largest one I
have seen, measured fifty-one inches in length. They are
universally called by the fishermen, dog-fish, which, according
to Dr. Mitchill and Dr. Dekay is the name by which they are
distinguished near New York. Indeed their general resem-
blance to the dog-fish is very striking, and an inexperienced
observer may be readily excused for confounding the two.
From the form of their teeth we may naturally suppose that
their food does not consist of fish. The stomach of one
which I examined contained shrimps, a small crab, and the
fragments of a specimen of Mactra ovalis.
As this species is not mentioned in Dr. Storer's Report, it
seems probable that it does not inhabit so far north as the
coast of Massachusetts ; how much beyond New York it ex-
tends to the south we cannot at present determine.
Spinax acanthias. Lin.
The dog-fish, though said by Dr. Storer to be at some sea-
sons very common on the coast of Massachusetts, is in Brook-
haven very rare. I saw but one specimen ; it was taken in
Old Man's Harbor, May 21, 1841.
Fishes of Brookhaven. L. I. 2S9
Raia diaphanes. Mitch.
Plate XII. Fig 2 *
A ray, which I am incUned to consider the same as the
diaphanes of Mitchill, is frequently taken in nets during sum-
mer. It agrees with Dr. Mitchill' s account in almost every
thing, except the spines on the tail. Unfortunately I neg-
lected to take a description from recent specimens ; I pre-
pared, however, a drawing, which is annexed. Dr. Dekay's
figure agrees much more nearly than mine does with Mitchill's
account, in regard to the spines on the tail. I examined sev-
eral fine specimens, and these spines were always much more
numerous than Dr. Dekay has represented them. Whether
the two can belong to the same species may perhaps be
questioned. In my fish the dorsals are not adipose, but con-
tain distinct rays ; the.ventrals also are smaller. The very
remarkable peculiarity, however, of the translucent portion
before the eyes induced me to suppose that 1 had found
Mitchill's fZ/ap/i«7ies.
Pastinaca hastata ? Dekay.
The rough-tailed sting ray, as this is called by the fisher-
men to distinguish it from the following species, is by no
means uncommon after the middle of July; fifteen to eighteen
of them beinsf sometimes taken at one haul of the net. Their
lengths varv from five to ten feet.
O at
That this is the Raia centroura of Dr. iNIitchill I have no
doubt. It agrees perfectly with the few characters mentioned
by him, and as it abounds in waters so near to those in which
his specimens were obtained, it appears almost certain that it
is the species to which he alludes. I think that it is also the
hastata of Dr. Dekay, though the spines on the tail, as de-
scribed by him, dift'er from what I have ever found them. I
have examined great numbers of specimens, and have invaria-
* This plate was prepared before the publication of Dr. Dekay's work, otherwise,
it would not now appear. — Pub. Com.
290 Ayres* Enumeration of the
bly found two of these spines and no more. They vary indeed
in length but not in number, and are always placed in close
connection, one immediately over the other. Dr. Dekay,
however, describes his specimen as having three spines, of
which the first is three inches from the second. But as in his
characteristics, he says the tail is '' armed with two or more
spines," it is possible that the number " three " is only an ac-
cidental variation.
It appears to me that Dr. Dekay has not acted wisely in
rejecting Mitchill's name, especially as he has adopted many
of his specific names where there is no more to guide us in
determining the species than we have in this instance. But
as he has given a description, accompanied by a good figure,
of his fish, I have judged it better to adopt the name, hastata,
proposed by him.
Myliobatis bispinosus. Storer.
Plate XIII. Fig 1.
This species, the smooth-tailed sting ray of the fishermen, is
much less common than the last, and may indeed be con-
sidered very rare. I have seen but one specimen ; this was
caught July 17, 1841, and was three feet eleven inches in
length. It is a very clearly marked species, and as Dr. Storer
was obliged to draw up his account from imperfect materials,
I have prepared a description and drawing, taken from the
specimen which I obtained on Long Island.
Entire length three feet eleven inches ; length exclusive of the tail one
foot six inches ; breadth across the pectorals two feet five inches. Dis-
tance between the eyes four and a quarter inches ; eyes vertical, elliptical,
greatest diameter one inch, least diameter three quarters. On the summit
of the orbit of each eye is a hard, blunt, vertical projection, about one
eighth of an inch in height, nearly white at the extremity.
Body above, smooth, entirely destitute of spines, even on the dorsal
ridge. Color of the whole body and head above, reddish brown ; tail
lighter at the base, but nearly black towards the tip ; color beneath,
whitish. *
The head is rounded anteriorly, and extends backward, widening but
little, for four and a half inches, until opposite the eyes where it joins the
body. Mouth two inches in breadth, situated four inches posterior to the
Fishes of Brookhaven. L. I. 291
snout ; jaws lined with numerous blunt, tesselated teeth. Nostrils about
an inch and a half anterior to the mouth, each provided with a valve, and
having a depression or channel leading back almost to the corner of the
mouth. Branchial apertures five on each side ; distance between the ante-
rior pair four inches. Spiracles situated behind the eyes, elliptical, one
and a half inches in length.
On the tail are two reversely serrated spines, one situated directly above
the other, of which the upper one is the shorter ; their lengths are two
and three fourths, and three and three fourth inches. Their insertion is at
about five and a half inches from the origin of the tail ; in color they are
dingy white.
Immediately before them is a small dorsal fin, one and a half inches in
length, and one inch in height. Tail very slender, smooth to the tip, the
inferior surface presenting no vestige whatever of fins. Anus beneath the
origin of the tail ; immediately posterior to it are two cylindrical, or slightly
conic, appendages, three and three fourth inches in length.
As the specimen here described is the only one which has fallen under
my notice, I am of course unable to determine whether all the characters
which have been stated will prove to be constant. With respect to one,
the relative length of the two spines upon the tail, variation may probably
be expected. The upper spine will, in some instances, doubtless be the
longer of the two. The specimen figured was apparently a male ; it was
obtained at the same place with the preceding species.
I have thus completed my notice of the fishes occurring in
Brookhaven. That it is a complete list I am very far from
believing. I was there but three years, and I have confined
my remarks, with two exceptions, to those which I myself ob-
served during that time. Those two, the drum-fish and the
mackerel, are species so well known that I thought myself safe
in admitting them from the accounts of the fishermen. If I
had been willing to include those of which I had received sat-
isfactory information, but of which I had not seen specimens,
a few more species might have been added. In two instances
fish were described to me as having been taken, one at Green-
port and the other at Miller's Place, which attracted attention
from the singular structure of the head, and which were evi-
dently Rcmoras, but of what species I could not of course
determine. Lampreys also arc taken every year in the Con-
necticut River at Fireplace ; they are, I suppose, the Petro-
myzon americamis of Le Sueur. I heard also of two or three
species of sharks which I did not see ; and of a fish called in
292 Fishes of Brookhaven^ L. I.
the South Bay, Lafayette, but which I should judge to be not
identical with the one nnentioned by Dr. Dekay under that
name, the Leiostomus ohliquus. Since I left the island also
one species has been added to the list. During the summer
of 1842, the Pelamys sarda appeared on the north shore of
Brookhaven, and quite a number of them were taken. They
were entirely new to the fishermen, who had never seen there
any species like them. While on a visit to the island in Au-
gust, 1842, I saw two specimens, of which I obtained one ;
they weighed about four pounds each. It appears to me,
therefore, not improbable that a residence of a few more years
would have enabled me to double the number of species here
recorded.
In some instances my observations may seem to vary from
the assertions of others, or even to contradict them. In re-
gard to these I may be allowed to mention that what I have
stated has been what, in almost every case, has come under
my own notice, and that these apparent discrepancies may be
only local peculiarities of habit. Thus the Belone truncata I
found to move only or chiefly in the night. Several species
I have mentioned as very rare while on other parts of our
coast they are common, as the Scomber vernalis, Morrhua
pruinosa, and others. I have simply, however, recorded the
facts as I found them. In other cases I have named as com-
mon what Dr. Dekay calls very rare. A remarkable example
of this is the Prionotus caroUmis. There can be no question
that the fish to which we both refer is the same ; his descrip-
tion and figure agree perfectly with my specimens. And yet
he says, " This is a very rare species. In the course of twenty
years, I have not met with more than six or eight individuals."
While at Miller's Place scarcely any species is more common ;
1 have seen many hundreds taken in the course of a single
afternoon.
In the last number of this Journal a Coitus was mentioned
by me, with the specific name variabilis, supposing that it was
undescribed. It is, I think, the one intended by Dr. Dekay
as the Coitus ceneus ; the name proposed by me must, of
course, be suppressed.
Fishes of Brookhaven^ L. I. 293
Art. XXIV. — descriptions OF FOUR SPECIES OF FISH FROM
BROOKHAVEX, L. I., ALL OF WHICH ARE BELIEVED TO BE NEW.
By William O. Ayres, of East Hartford, Con.
Carcharias griseus.
Plate XII. Fig. 4.
Length forty-one inches ; greatest depth five and a quarter
inches. Color above light bluish gray, sides lighter, beneath
white. Branchial orifices five on each side, the posterior one
being above the origin of the pectoral fin. Eyes oval and
vertical, two and a quarter inches posterior to the snout, their
length half an inch. Mouth on the inferior surface, about
two and a half inches behind the snout. Teeth numerous in
both jaws, but not arranged in regular rows ; in the upper
jaw, however, two indistinct rows may be traced. Teeth in
both jaws similar in shape ; they are long and pointed, (with
spreading- roots), and in some instances are furnished with a
small projection on each side near the base, like those of the
genus scyllium ; in others these appendages are wanting ; edges
of the teeth smooth. Nostrils oval, immediately anterior to
the mouth. No spiracles discernible on the closest examina-
tion.
The pectorals arise about nine inches from the snout ; they
are horizontal, and their height, measuring along the edge to
the tip is five and a quarter inches. The first dorsal arises
fifteen inches from the snout, is four and three fourth inches
in length, three and a half in height, nearly straight on the
anterior edge and concave behind ; the posterior portion is
free. The ventrals arise twenty-one and a quarter inches
from the snout, are horizontal and measuring as in the pecto-
rals, are three and a half inches in height. The second dorsal
arises eight inches posterior to the origin of the first, is three
and a half inches in length, two and a quarter in height,
shaped much like the first. The anal arises twenty-six and
a quarter inches from the snout, is two inches and a half in
length, an inch and a half in height.
294 Aij7^es' Description of the
At the origin of the caudal fin is a rather shallow depression
crossing the body, nearly half an inch in breadth ; the distance
from this depression to the termination of the vertebrae is nine
and three-fourth inches. The inferior portion of the tail pre-
sents two lobes ; the first is at the anterior extremity of the
fin, the height of which is three and three-fourth inches ; the
other is two inches from the end of the tail, the height of the
lobe being an inch and a quarter.
I am not acquainted with any species to which this can be
considered very nearly allied. It differs in respect to the
teeth from almost all others of the genus and indeed corres-
ponds in this point more nearly with the characters of Scyl-
lium. That it cannot, however, belong to this latter genus is
apparent from the position of the first dorsal and from the
structure of the nostrils.
Though the specimen from which my description was taken
was only forty-one inches in length, I am yet confident that
the species attains a much greater size. I have several teeth
which were taken from a shark caught on the south side of
the island ; they belong evidently to a fish of this species, and
judging from their relative size, the individual could not have
been less than seven feet long.
The specimen figured was caught in the Sound, on the north
shore of Brookhaven, L. I.
Gasterosteus millepunctatus.
Plate XII. Fig. 3.
Entire length one inch and eight tenths ; greatest depth
four tenths of an inch ; depth at the insertion of the caudal
fin three twentieths ; depth, one fifth of an inch anterior to
the caudal fin, only a little more than one twentieth. Body
very thin on the back, but widening toward the abdomen,
where it is in some specimens three tenths of an inch in thick-
ness ; posterior to the origin of the anal fin the body is some-
what compressed.
In color the sides show a ground of greenish olive, thickly
Fishes of Brookhaven^ L. I. 295
clouded over with brown ; this latter, however, does not con-
sist of a plain shading of that color, but of a very vast num-
ber of small, blackish spots, not dispersed uniformly, but gath-
ered in clouds and waves, and sometimes in tolerably well- ^
defined vertical bands. Lower portion of the sides somewhat
lighter, abdomen silvery. Colors of the head like those of the
body, the top and upper part of the sides being greenish,
clouded with brown, while the lower portions of the opercu-
lum and preoperculum and the throat are lighter. In one
specimen in my possession, the spots on the sides are nearly
confluent, so that the whole upper part of the fish appears
almost black.
Eyes near the summit of the head, one tenth of an inch in
diameter, distance between them a little less than their diame-
ter. Mouth rather small, inclining upward, teeth numerous in
both jaws. Lateral line arises above the operculum, ascends
sliglitly, then descends until past the origin of the dorsal fin,
whence it proceeds in nearly a straight course to the tail.
Sides entirely destitute of the plates which characterize most
species of the genus.
The dorsal fin arises eight tenths of an inch from the point
of the upper jaw, is half an inch in length and one tenth of
an inch in height. Anterior to the fin are four spines, three
of which are free. The first is one sixth of an inch in height,
the second a very little shorter than the first, the third about
one eighth of an inch high, the fourth, which is connected
with the dorsal fin, of the same height with the second.
Each ventral fin is represented by a single serrated spine,
one fifth of an inch in length. In some of the younger indi-
viduals this spine is bright red, but 1 have not found it so
colored in any case where the fish was more than an inch long.
The pectorals arise about one tenth of an inch from the oper-
culum, are three twentieths of an inch in length, one fifth of an
inch in height, rounded. Anal three twentieths of an inch in
height, half an inch in length, terminating on the same plane
with the dorsal fin. Immediately preceding the origin of the
anal is a spine, a little less in height than the height of the fin.
Caudal fin square at the extremity, one fourth of an inch high.
296 Ay res' Description of the
This species inhabits both the salt and fresh water ; in
Old Man's Harbor it is very abundant, and I have found it
also in the Connecticut river on the south side of the island,
and in the Hockanum river, about two miles east of Hart-
ford, Connecticut. The specimen figured was one from the
fresh water ; they are a little deeper in proportion to their
length than those from the salt water.
In the want of armature on the sides, this species resembles
the G. Imvis of Cuvier, and apparently the apeltes. If Mr.
Swainson's arrangement were to be adopted, this character
would place it in his subgenus Leiurus. The specimen from
which my description was drawn was about as large as any I
have seen.
FuNDULUS FUSCUS.
Plate Xni. Fig. 2.
Entire length two and one tenth inches ; greatest depth
nine twentieths. Body rather rounded, somewhat compressed
toward the tail. Color above and on the sides very dark
brown, striped longitudinally with narrow lines, which are
lighter. Abdomen, lower jaw, preoperculum, and lower part
of the operculum very light brown, almost white. Near the
origin of the caudal fin a black vertical band crosses the body.
Mouth rather small ; teeth numerous and arranged in the fol-
lowing order. Those in the lower jaw are in a double row,
which however is not perfectly regular. In the upper jaw,
the intermaxillaries are densely crowded with teeth, while on
the maxillaries are none. On each palatine bone is a double
row, and on the vomer are a few. The superior pharyngeals
are thickly covered ; the same is true of the inferior pharyn-
geals, the lower part of the last pair of branchial arches, and
the posterior one of the chain of small bones, which extend
backward from the tongue and connect the arches. The
tongue is smooth.
The eyes are three twentieths of an inch from the termi-
nation of the upper jaw, and one tenth of an inch in diame-
Fishes of Bronkhaven^ L. I. 297
ter. The scales extend over the body and head ; they are
large but not prominent, and when the fish is alive are scarcely
discernible. A number of very distinct mucous pores are
scattered on the top and sides of the head. The lateral line
arises at the upper angle of the operculum, and runs in nearly
a straight course to the tail ; it is not apparent vvitliout close
observation.
The dorsal fin arises one inch from the point of the upper
jaw, is half an inch in length, three tenths of an inch in height,
rounded, rays all flexible. The anal fin arises one fifth of an
inch posterior to the origin of the dorsal, is three twentieths
of an inch in length, seven twentieths in height. Origin of
the ventrals three tenths of an inch anterior to that of the
anal ; they are one tenth of an inch in length, three tenths in
height. Pectorals rounded, arising immediately posterior to
the termination of the operculum, a little more than one tenth
of an inch in length, one fourth of an inch in height. Cau-
dal fin one fourth of an inch in length, four tenths in height,
rounded.
Branchial rays four.
Fin Rays, D. 15 ; P. 14 ; V. 6 ; A. 9 ; C. 13.
This species appears to me correctly referrible to the ge-
nus Fundidus, as it agrees with it in all points. It is, indeed,
very distinct from the fishes placed in that genus by Dr. De-
kay ; still I think it ought to be called Fundidus, while those
which he has included under that name I should arrange with
Hydrorgira of Le Sueur. To this latter genus, the species
which I have described, evidently does not belong ; but before
mentioning the points of difiference it is necessary to notice
one or two of the peculiarities of Hydrargira.
Le Sueur describes his genus as having the '\jaws protrac-
tile," and the structure of the mouth which renders them pro-
tractile, is somewhat peculiar. The whole of the mouth, so
far as the upper jaw is concerned, is formed by the intermax-
illaries, which are very large. The pedicels of these intermax-
illaries are unconnnonly long, thus enabling the vviiole to be
thrust far forward, and rendering the mouth protractile. And
36
298 A'l/res^ Descriptions of
as the body of the intermaxillary turns off at nearly a right
angle to the pedicel, it follows that the mouth is transverse,
scarcely opening backward at all. It should not be inferred,
however, from this, that the maxillaries are small ; they are in
fact rather large, about as long as the intermaxillaries, and yet
they form no part of the opening of the mouth. Their upper
termination is immediately behind the angles of the inter-
maxillaries, and they descend on each side to a point below
the corner of the mouth and posterior to it, being covered in
part by the anterior sub-orbitar bone. They lie therefore en-
tirely posterior to the intermaxillaries, and are not connected
at all with them. When the jaw is thrust forward to its
greatest extent, the maxillaries remain unmoved. Nor is this
confined to a single species; I have (our, fasciata, multifas-
ciata, piscuhnta and flavula, and in all these the structure of
the mouth corresponds perfectly to what I have here men-
tioned. It will probably be found, therefore, common to the
whole genus. Another thing in which all the species seem to
agree, is in the scales on the top of the head. These are
large, with one in the centre, covering the others near it, all
its edges being free.
Now in neither of these particulars does the species which
I have described (fuscus) correspond with the account here
given. The intermaxillaries are very short, and the sides of
the upper jaw are formed by the maxillaries. The anterior
frontal bone extends forward to the very extremity of the
head ; under the tip of it are the short intermaxillaries studded
with teeth, and extending from them downward are the
maxillaries destitute of teeth. The scaling also on the top of
the head does not differ materially from that of ordinary fishes.
This species, therefore, is apparently very distinct from Hy-
drargira ; and if it is not a Fundulus, I do not know where to
arrange it. The structure of the mouth would indeed appear
to separate it from the family of the Cyprinidce, in which, Cu-
vier says, the whole border of the upper jaw is formed by the
intermaxillaries, and yet it seems necessarily included in that
family.
new Species of Fish. 299
I have not been able to find it except in the Connecticut
river, and a stream in the southern partof Brookhaven. That
it exists, however, in other parts of Long Island is not at all
improbable.
Leuciscus nasutus.
Plate XIII. Fig. 3.
Entire length three and a half inches; greatest depth six
tenths of an inch ; depth at the insertion of the caudal fin,
three tenths ; length of the head, three fourths ; depth of the
head, four tenths.
Color above, and on the sides, dark blackish brown. All
beneath, from the tip of the upper jaw to the caudal fin,
nearly white. The dark brown of the sides becomes a little
lighter as it descends, still the transition to the white beneath
is very abrupt. The dorsal and caudal fins are light brown,
lighter than the back ; ventrals and anal nearly transparent ;
pectorals a little darker than the ventrals.
Eyes three tenths of an inch from the extremity of the up-
per jaw, three twentieths in diameter ; iris silvery, clouded
with dark dots.
Mouth semicircular, situated beneath the projecting snout,
small, toothless ; lips not corrugated, perfectly smooth.
Head destitute of scales ; those on the body, small. The
lateral line commencing at the upper angle of the operculum
bends slightly downward, and then runs nearly straight to the
caudal fin. When the specimen becomes dry it may be
traced passing forward from the angle of the operculum till it
almost reaches the eye, then turning abruptly downward at
nearly a right angle it descends till it is below the level of the
eye ; turning again it passes forward until bending upward
and backward it terminates at the anterior side of the nostrils.
Nostrils situated in an oval depresssion anterior to the up-
per part of the eye ; the posterior aperture the larger.
The dorsal fin arises one inch and nine twentieths from the
tip of the head, is seven twentieths in length, eleven twenti-
36*
300 Ayres"* Descriptions of
eths in height, trapezoidal in form. The anal arises nine
twentieths of an inch posterior to the origin of the dorsal, is
similar to that fin in shape, one fourth of an inch in length,
eleven twentieths in height. The ventrals arising six tenths
of an inch anterior to the origin of the anal, are three twen-
tieths of an inch in length, half an inch in height, rounded.
The pectorals are situated very low down, almost beneath the
body ; their origin is opposite to the termination of the oper-
culum, they are eleven twentieths of an inch in height, three
twentieths in length, rounded. The caudal fin is beautifully
lunated, being six tenths of an inch in height at the extremi-
ties, three tenths in the height of the central rays.
Branchial rays three, flat and broad.
^ Fin rays, D. 10 ; A. 8 ; V. 9 ; P. 16 ; C. 19.
The abdominal anatomy bears a striking resemblance to
that of L. pulchelhis, Storer. The stomach differs from the
other parts of the alimentary canal only in being a little
larger ; it diminishes very gradually as it passes backward
rather more than half the length of the abdomen, and termi-
nates at a tolerably well defined pylorus. From the pylorus
the canal is reflexed and extending forward almost to the an-
terior extremity of the abdominal cavity it turns backward
and proceeds straight to the anus. Its size from the pylorus
is nearly uniform. Cceca none.
The liver is unequally divided into three lobes. The first,
which is largest, is situated on the right side ; the second lies
beneath the folds of the intestinal canal, and is longer than
the first but more slender ; the third, which is short, is on the
left side.
The air-bladder is double, being divided by a transverse
stricture so that it appears formed of two sacs united by a
slender neck ; the posterior division is much the larger. From
the anterior part of this latter division proceeds a slender tube
which enters the aesophagus, thus forming a communication
with the external air.
The ovaries in the female are double, oval in form, occupy-
ing, when fully developed, nearly the whole length of the ab-
neiD Species of Fish. 301
domen ; the eggs, being large, are comparatively but few in
number.
It appears to me unquestionable that this species ought to
be placed in the genus Leuciscus. The singular position of
the mouth seems at first sight to render it so very unhke any
known species of the genus, that we can scarcely believe it
should be so referred. An examination of the anatomv of the
fish, however, apparently removes every difficulty. The struc-
ture of the abdominal organs, as already noticed, is in perfect
accordance with what we find in other species of the genus,
but a still more remarkable resemblance remains yet to be
mentioned ; it is in respect to the armature of the throat, the
inferior pharyngeal bones. These in Leuciscus are large, very
strong, curved, and furnished on their inner and posterior
edge with several stout, conic, bony processes which appear
like teeth, and are the only organs answering the purpose of
teeth with which the fish is provided. These bones are fur-
nished with several pairs of muscles. In order to afford at-
tachment for one of these, a pair which passing inward and
backwark is designed to bring the bones together, and cause
them to act one against the other, we find that the basilary
bone is prolonged, turns downward, and ends in a plate flat-
tened verticallv, to which the muscles are attached. This ba-
silary prolongation forms one of the most remarkable pecu-
liarities of the skull. Now all these characteristics are found
perfectly in the present species. The strong curved pharyn-
geals with their teeth, the muscles, the elongated bone with
its flattened plate for the insertion of these muscles, all occur
in perfect conformity with the structure of other species of
the genus. The formation of the mouth also, though exter-
nally so singular, is yet precisely similar to that of the well
known species of Leuciscus, The whole border of the upper
jaw is formed by the intermaxillaries, which are broad and
stout ; immediately behind these and closely applied to them
are the maxillaries, broad, and furnished with their own sepa-
rate muscles, but apparently capable of little motion inde-
pendent of that of the intermaxillaries. These bones in this
302 New Species of Fish.
species, however, are very peculiar in their position. Instead
of lying obliquely (thus forming the opening of the mouth as
in ordinary fishes) they are perfectly horizontal, and as the
integuments covering them are thick and project forward in
the form of a pointed snout, the mouth becomes, of course,
situated beneath the head, almost as in the sharks and other
cartalaginous fishes. Leuciscus atronasus of Mitchill ap-
proaches more nearly to it in this respect than any other
species of the genus with which I am acquainted. To atro-
nasus also it appears otherwise somewhat allied.
The first information we had in regard to this species was
obtained from Mr. Charles P. Turner, of Hartford, Ct., who
found it in a small stream in West Hartford. It appears
there, however, to be rather rare, and the only specimen I
have been able to procure from that locality is the one which
he first presented to me. But it has since been ascertained
to exist in Massachusetts. Mr. C. H. Olmstead recently found
it very abundant in some of the streams in Blandford, and to
his kindness I am indebted for numerous specimens. Ac-
cording to his account of them they inhabit rapid streams,
hiding most commonly under stones, from which they often
dart out with great speed. All those which he procured were
caught with the hook. They struck at the bait with all the
quickness and vigor of trout, and might be taken in almost
any numbers. The largest which he saw, and which is now
in my possession, is five and one fourth inches in length.
JFlshes of the Ohio and its Tributaries. 30
o
Art. XXV. — descriptions OF THE FISHES OF THE OHIO RIVER
AXD ITS TRIBUTARIES. By Jared P. Kirtland, M. D.
(Contiaued from page 240.)
AciPENSER. Lin.
A. ruhicundus. Le Sueur. The Lake Sturgeon.
Acipenser
■ rubicundus.
Les. Trans. Am. P. S., n. s., i. 3,
u
Kiriland's Report, p. 170.
maculosus.
Les. Trans. Am. P. S., n. s., i. 3
a
Kirtland's Report, p. 170.
Ohioensis.
Raf. lehth. Ohioensis, p. 80.
«
Kirtland's Report, p. 170.
serotinus.
Raf. Ichth. Ohioensis, p. 80.
macrosLomus .
c( a i( (c
nudus.
Kirtland's manuscript.
Plate XIV. Fis. 1.
o*
Head one fifth the total length of the fish ; nose attenuated,
slightly recurved at the tip ; forehead broad between the eyes ;
sulcated longitudinally, a slight elevation on each side, situated
upon a line between the eyes, also a larger elevation on each
side of the sulcation in the centre of the forehead. Cirrhi four,
on a line transverse to the head. JSostrils double, superior and
anterior smaller and more circular ; eyes oblong, large ; irids
yellowish. Ojjerculum radiated, tuberculated, imperfectly
closing the branchial openings. Mouth projecting, pendulous,
oblong, lobed.
Body armed with 15 plates anterior to the dorsal fin, all
except the posterior, carinated and terminating posteriorly in a
spine. Si.x osseous scales between the caudal and dorsal fins,
the posterior plate elongated, the two preceding in pairs, — all
are simple and armed with spines.
Lateral rows furnished with 36 spinous plates.
Abdominal rows with 9 simple plates.
Two simple plates between the vent and the anal fin, the
anterior larger.
304 Fishes of the Ohio
Four plates between the anal and caudal fins, the two
middle in pairs.
Pectoral fins large, falcate ; the dorsal, abdominal and anal
trapezoidal ; and the caudal lunate.
Color. Head and body olive-brown above, white beneath.
Fins reddish. Younger specimens maculated on the body
and sides.
Length 2 feet.
Hah. Ohio river and Lake Erie.
Observations. The description and drawing were made
from the same specimen, which was procured in the Cincinnati
market. The varieties occasioned by age, sex, locality and
other circumstances have occasioned me much perplexity, but
after five years close examination I feel a great degree of con-
fidence in throwing the whole group into one species, though
it presents a formidable list of synonyms.
The color and form of the fish, and the number, size, and
position of the plates vary extremely in specimens of appa-
rently similar age, taken in the same locations. Two out of
five specimens lying in the Cincinnati market on the 23d of
December, 1840, presented characters different from any in-
cluded in the descriptions above referred to, and if variations
in the number and appearance of the shields, and in the forms
of the head and body constitute essential specific characters,
we must add several more new species to the list. These
characters are not however permanent, and therefore are not
to be relied upon. If the maculosus of Le Sueur be not the
young of the others, their young have never been discovered.
The extreme old, shed entirely their shields, the surface of the
body becomes naked and they lose some of their essential
generic characters. It was a drawing and description of an
individual in this condition, that I formerly communicated to
the Boston Society of Natural History under the name of A.
nudus. I have since seen several individuals of this character
taken in Lake Erie and in the Ohio river.
and its Tributaries. 305
Salmo. Lin.
S. fontinalis. Mitch. The Common Brook Trout.
Salmo fontinalis. Mitch. Trans. Lit. et Philosop. Soc. vol. i. p. 435.
" " Richardson's Fauna, p. 176.
" " Slorer's Report on the Fishes of Massachusetts, p. 429,
" " Kirtl. Rep. on the Zool. of Ohio, Catalogue, p. 169.
" nigrescens. Raf. Ichthyol. Ohioensis, p. 45.
Plate XIV. Fig. 2.
Observations. A full description of this species has been
furnished by Dr. Storer, in vol. ii. page 429 of this journal,
to which we would refer the reader.
The specimen before us was taken in the Sault St. Marie.
Among half a dozen from that locality there is considerable
difference in the size and colors.
The only localities in which it is found in the state of Ohio,
is Chagrin river, in Geauga county, and a small stream that
enters Lake Erie at Kingsville, in Ashtabula county. It abounds
in the Sault St. Marie in such abundance, that it is taken for
exportation. We are indebted to Charles M. Giddings, Esq.,
of Cleveland, for a number of fine specimens from St. Marys.
Leuciscus. Klein.
L. crysoleiicas. Mitch. Gold-shiner.
Leuciscus crysoleucas. Mitch. Trans. Lit. et Philosop. Soc. N. Y., vol. i. p. 459.
" " Slorer's Rep. on the Fishes of Massachusetts, p. 405.
Luxilus crysocepkalus? Raf. Ichthyol. Ohioensis, p. 43.
Plate XV. Fig. 1.
Observations. I consider the fish represented in the sketch
as the Leuciscus crysoleucas of Mitchill which has already
been amply described by Dr. Storer, vol. ii. p. 405 of this
journal. 1 shall not attempt to make any additions to his
description, but would observe that our western fish is usually
of a deep pea-green on its back, and not black. The specimen
before me was taken in a bayou of the Cuyahoga river, near
306 Fishes of the Ohio
Cleveland, where it never attains a greater size than is repre-
sented in the plate, but it abounds in some of the small lakes
in Portage and Summit counties in this state, and there fre-
quently is as large as those found in the waters of the Atlantic
states.
It is a matter of uncertainty what fish Rafinesque had in
view when he described his Luxulus crysohucas. His de-
scription does not apply to this species nor to any with which
I am acquainted.
In strict conformity to Rafinesque's arrangement, this spe-
cies should, perhaps, have been placed under his genus Rutilus.
L. compresms. Raf. Fall-Fish.
Rutilus compressus. Raf. Ichthyol. Ohioensis, p. 51.
" " Kirtl. Rep. on the Zool. of Ohio, p. 1G9.
Plate XV. Fig. 2.
Head small, compressed laterally, mouth diagonal, upper
jaw rounded at the tip ; the lower slightly projecting. Nos-
trils small, on a line w ith the superior edge of the eye. Eyes
larije, circular.
Bochj more compressed than in any other species of this
family, scales medium size, closely appressed. Back gibbous
behind the base of the head, thence rectilinear to the dorsal
fin ; abdomen slightly carinated at the base of the anal fin.
Fins thin, delicate and diaphanous.
Color. Iris gilt, pectoral fins yellow, and abdominal, bright
orange ; head and back yellowish-brown, sides and beneath
silvery.
Len<rth from 2 to 4 inches.
Hah. Mahoning river.
D. 9 ; C. 30 ; A. 9 ; P. 14.
, v^. vw ,
Observations. This species in its contour resembles some-
what the Leuciscus crysohucas of Mitch, but its color, the num-
ber of rays in the caudal fin, and its more compressed form,
will readily distinguish it.
and its Tributaries. 3U7
Alosa. Cuv.
A. chrysochloris. Raf. The Gold-Shad. Gold-Herring.
Skip-Jack.
Pomolohus chrysochloris. Rafinesque. Ichthyologia Ohioensis, p. 39.
Plate XV. Fig. 3.
Head triangular, laterally compressed nearly one fifth the
entire length of the fish ; lower jaw obtuse at its end, pro-
jecting; upper jaw the shorter, emarginate and slightly retuse,
so that the mouth apparently opens above and behind its usual
place in other fishes ; maxilla loosely attached at their lower
extremities, which permits them to turn upon the closer attach-
ment at their upper extremities, when the mouth is extended ;
both jaws armed with minute teeth, which are larger in the
upper jaw, but hardly evident to the eye without the aid of a
glass ; operculum three-parted, scaless ; iris golden. The
lateral line is nearly obsolete.
Body sub-cylindric, compressed on the sides ; abdomen
slightly carinate and serrate ; back rounded ; base of the anal
fin sub-carinate.
Dorsal fin trapezoidal, elevated anteriorly, acute at its angles.
Caudal fin acutely and deeply bilobed, the base of the rays
covered with scales.
Anal fin long, narrow and diaphanous.
Ventral fin also diaphanous, small and delicate, situated
beneath the posterior half of the dorsal.
Pectoral small, short, clear and falcate.
Length from 12 to 18 inches.
Color. The top of the head and back bluish purple, irides-
cent, the gill-covers and sides of the jaws golden and purple,
sides of the body and the abdomen pure white.
Hab. Ohio river.
D. 18 ; C. 34 ; A. 18 ; V. 9 ; P. 16 rays.
Observations, Rafinesque instituted a genus which he
called Pomolobus, to receive this species. The generic charac-
ters do not, however, appear sufficiently obvious to be acknowl-
303 Mighels' Catalogue of
edged. In one of his characters, Rafinesque is evidently
incorrect; he speaks of the "jaws without teeth;" when
the specimen is somewhat desiccated, or is examined by the
lens, both jaws are seen to be furnished with minute teeth.
This delicate and beautiful species, which is occasionally
seen in the market of Cincinnati, is one of the most graceful
and active fish that inhabits the Ohio. In pursuit of food or
in sport, it frequently leaps from the water, from which cir-
cumstance it has received the name of Skip-Jack. It is a
great annoyance to the angler, as it drives away most other
kinds of fish ; but it will itself often take a baited hook. It
is esteemed as a good pan-fish.
Art. XXVL — CATALOGUE OF THE MARINE, FLUVIATILE A^D
TERRESTRIAL SHELLS OF THE STATE OF MAINE AND AD-
JACENT OCEAN. By J. W. Mighels, M. D. Porlland, communicated
March, 1843.
This catalogue is offered in the hope that it may be useful,
not only in extending a knowledge of the geographical distri-
bution of the species, but that some of the facts recorded may
be made available hereafter, in the investigations of geology.
I regret that it is not in my power to give more certain infor-
mation respecting the anatomy and habits of the molluscous
animals. Owing to the fact that a large proportion of the
marine shells are pelagic, and, therefore, rarely found con-
taining the living animals, it must be a long time before much
accurate information can be obtained respecting them. In-
deed, many of the commonest species of the mollusca are far
from being perfectly understood. This is especially true in
regard to most of the minute species, and certainly not untrue
in respect to many of the larger ones. Not having had suffi-
cient opportunities to study the mollusca successfully, I have
confined my remarks, mostly, to such facts as are most avail-
able and obvious.
the Shells of Maine. 309
As to the species of shells enumerated in this catalogue,
most of them are satisfactorily identified ; but in respect to
some, there is still much uncertainty. This is owing, in part,
to a want of the necessary books and plates, and partly to a
want of European shells for comparison. It becomes more
and more known, every year, that many of our species are
identical with those of northern Europe, and it is reasonable
to conclude that more extended observation will detect many
more coincidences : — exchanges are, therefore, solicited with
European naturalists, interested in this subject.
In citing authorities it will be noticed that I have dropped
Professor Adams's name, in nineteen of the species which
were described under his name in connection with mine, in
Vol. iv., No. 1, of this Journal. In justice to him and to my-
self, this correction should be made, which accords with the
original paper, but which was overlooked by the publishers.
I, however, most cheerfully acknowledge my indebtedness to
Professor Adams for the assistance he afforded me in prepar-
ing that article for the press. In respect to the numerous
errors to be found in it, I will take this opportunity to remark,
that they were partly derived from precipitancy and want of
care in the original manuscript, and partly from errors of the
press, neither Mr. Adams nor myself having had proof sheets
in season to make the necessary corrections. However much
disgrace should attach to me for those mortifying blunders,
none can be laid to the charge of professor Adams, as it was
all re-written by myself, and several of the species were never
seen by him.
In compiling this catalogue, I have the pleasure to acknowl-
edge my indebtedness to Dr. Gould's " Report on the Inver-
tebrata of Massachusetts," as well as to many personal favors
from that gentleman, pertaining to the same subject. I have,
also, derived much information from the papers of Mr. Cou-
thouy and Professor Adams. In my explorations I have
received much valuable assistance from my friend Captain
Walden, of the United States Revenue Cutter, Morris, — who
by his zeal in dredging in deep water, and exploring along the
310 Mighels^ Catalogue of
eastern shores, and among the islands, has procured many rare
species. Could the officers of the several Revenue Cutters in
commission in the United States be induced to imitate his
example, a vast amount of valuable matter would be added to
the natural history of this country. I would also acknowledge
my obligations to Dr. Ray, principal of the Insane Hospital
at Augusta, Dr. Milliken of Unity, and Mr. True, principal of
the academy at Monmouth, for many valuable species.
I have omitted synonyms excepting in instances where it
was necessary to introduce them for the purpose of identifying
certain species.
Several species of naked mollusca occur here, but not hav-
ing had opportunities to study them, so as to designate them
accurately, I have omitted them.
Genus Balanus. Lam.
B, geniculatus, Conrad. This is a pelagic shell, and is,
therefore, never found in place. As remarked by Dr. Gould,
1 have never found it in any other situation than in its
attachment to the valves of Pccten magellanicus. It is rare
in Casco Bay, but is probably plenty at Passamaquoddy and
the Bay of Fundy. It is much the largest of all our species of
Balanus ; I have one specimen two inches across the base,
and one and three quarters inch in height.
B.ehurneus,QiO\i\d. Pelagic. This species is frequently found
attached to the backs and claws of the larger Crustacea, bits of
wood, &-C. in Casco Bay ; but I presume its more congenial
habitat is farther south, where it is more abundant and more
perfect. We obtain our best specimens from ships' bottoms,
from the West Indies.
B. rugosus, Donovan, Montagu. This species occurs in
great abundance and perfection in Casco Bay. It is sometimes
found above low-water mark, attached to rocks, but it prefers
deeper water, and attains the greatest perfection when attached
to other shells, and sunken timbers.
B. ovularis, Lam. Littoral. This species occurs in the
greatest profusion imaginable, covering rocks and wooden
the Shells of Maine. 311
fixtures of every sort, on the whole line of coast, east and
west.
B. elongaius, Lin. This is found in company with the
preceding species, and is also very plenty. It is probably
a mere variety of it, as they are often grouped together in
such a manner and in such imperceptible gradation that it is
impossible to determine where one species begins or the other
ends. It is most abundant, and attains the greatest perfec-
tion, in still water, and seated upon wooden fixtures.
B. tintinnabulum, Lin. Lam. I found four or five stinted
specimens of this species, near fort Preble, situated in a deep
excavation in a ledge, near low-water mark, covered by ma-
rine plants, in which situation they were always under water.
Genus Anatifa. Lam.
A. lavis, Lin. This species is occasionally found in some
of the old docks in Portland harbor, fixed to sunken timbers.
A. striata, Lin. Bruguiere. This is found in company
with the preceding.
A. dentata, Wood. This is always found in company with
the two preceding species, but is much less abundant than
either. The three species are found in the greatest profusion
on the bottoms of vessels, arriving from the West Indies. I
have no doubt I have seen twenty bushels of them on the
bottom of a single vessel. Neither of the above species can
be, properly, regarded as indigenous to this State, but they
have all, probably, been imported from the south, and without
fresh importations, none of them would be maintained through
many generations.
There is much good reason for doubting the propriety of sep-
arating the above into distinct species. We often find them
all grouped together within the space of a square inch, and I
have frequently found each of them adhering to the pedicles of
the others ; and as to the form of the valves, the color of the
pedicles, d:c. these are constantly varying and interchanging,
so that they afford no certain data on wiiich to establish spe-
cific distinctions.
312 MigheW Catalogue of
A. vitrea, Lam. Pelagic. This is a good species, and,
probably, is the only one that is truly indigenous. It is occa-
sionally found dead and bleached on our shores after storms.
In 1840, it was found on one of the islands in Casco Bay, in
great numbers, alive, attached to sea-weed that had been
thrown up a short time previous by a violent storm.
Genus Pholas. Lin.
P. crispata, Lin. Pelagic. This species is probably plenty
in its proper station, but owing to its habit of boring into hard
clay and mud, to great depths, in deep water, it is difficult to
obtain, and therefore rare in collections. Imperfect speci-
mens are often thrown upon our beaches, and it is sometimes
brought up on the flukes of anchors in Portland harbor in a
state of great perfection. I have one specimen, thus ob-
tained, whicli is four and a half inches in length and two and
one eighth inches in width.
Genus Solen. Lin.
iS. ensis, Lin. Littoral. This species is found in great
abundance in some of our bays, near low-water mark. We
sometimes find dwarfish specimens upon our sandy beaches,
after storms, but they attain the greatest size and perfection
in quiet bays, near the mouths of rivers, where the mud is
soft and deep. They sometimes bury themselves to the depth
of two feet. I have been informed, by intelHgent fishermen,
that they have found them near the mouths of the Kenne-
bec and Penobscot rivers, a foot in length ! but I have never
yet seen one quite seven inches long.
Genus Solecurtus. Plain.
S. caribceus, Chemnitz, Lam. Con. This is a pelagic shell,
and of very rare occurrence in Maine. I have only found it
in a bleached state and in fragments. It is unquestionably
one of the most widely distributed species known to concholo-
gists. I Iiave received it from nearly every Atlantic state from
Maine to Alabama, and not long since, specimens exactly
the Shells of Maine. 313
similar, from Senegal, through Mons. Largilliert, of Rouen,
France.
Genus Machera. Gould.
M. iiitida, Gould. Pelagic, — taken rarely by fishermen,
on the banks of Newfoundland, from the stomachs of cod-
fishes. (JSIorrhua Americana, Storer.) I have never yet found
it in the waters of Maine.
M. cosiata, Say, Gould. 1 have never known of this spe-
cies being found above low-water mark, but whether it should
be regarded as properly pelagic or not, I am unable to say.
Dr. Gould thinks it inhabits the sand in shallow water ; this
is probably true, as I frequently find it thrown upon our sandy
beaches by moderate seas. I am not aware that it ever
inhabits muddy bottoms.
Genus Solemya. Lam.
iS'. velum, Say. Pelagic. This species is occasionally found
on the shores of Maine, after heavy easterly storms.
iS*. horealis, Totten. Pelagic. Single valves and fragments
of this fine species are sometimes found on Saco beach, after
violent storms. The only perfect specimen in my collection,
I took from the stomach of a cod-fish, which was taken in
deep water in Casco Bay, several miles from land.
Genus Panopjea. Menard.
P. arctica, Lam. Pelagic. The question is yet to be set-
tled whether this interesting shell is to be regarded as pro-
perly belonging to the State of Maine, as I am not aware that
it has ever been found this side the Gulf of St. Lawrence. J
have never obtained but four or five specimens of it, all of
which were taken from the stomachs of cod-fishes caught on
the coast of Labrador. The young shell is very thin and fra-
gile, and is covered with a thin, semi-transparent epidermis,
of a dirty white color, which extends considerably beyond the
margin of the shell.
37
314 Mighels^ Catalogue of
Genus Glycymeris. Lam.
G. siliqua, Chem. Pelagic. This is a rare shell on the
coast of Maine, but abundant on the Newfoundland Banks and
in the Gulf of St. Lawrence. 1 am assured by fishermen
that it is no uncommon thing to find half a dozen in the
stomach of a single cod-fisli, and when recent, as they fre-
quently are, they use them for bait. The finest specimens I
have seen were taken in the Gulf of St. Lawrence. In many
of these, the epidermis is very perfect to the beaks, and in
some individuals extends nearly an inch beyond the margin.
Genus Mya. Lin.
M. arenaria, Lin. This species abounds in Maine in the
greatest profusion imaginable, and is found in every nook and
corner throughout the whole line of coast, where it can find
sand or mud in which to bury itself. Through veracious and
intelligent fishermen I have traced it as far north and east as
the Gulf of St. Lawrence and Labrador, where it is said to be
of dwarfish dimensions. On the authority of Dr. Ray, how-
ever, it maintains its maximum size and perfection as far north
and east as Passamaquoddy Bay and Bay of Fundy.
M. fruncata, Lin. Pelagic. Immature specimens of this
species are rarely taken from the stomachs of fishes caught in
Casco Bay. Its more congenial habitation is further north
and east, where fine specimens are occasionally taken from
the stomachs of cod-fishes, caught in very deep water.
Genus Pandora. Brug.
P. trilineata, Say. Pelagic. I have occasionally taken this
shell by dredging in Portland harbor, where the bottom is cov-
ered with a great depth of soft mud. Capt. Walden has
dredged it in Penobscot Bay, in ten to fifteen fathoms of wa-
ter. It occurs, fossil, at Westbrook, in the post-tertiary for-
mation, in company with Nucula portlandica, &c.
the Shells of Maine. 315
Genus Osteodesma. Desh.
O. (Lyonsia,) hyalina, Con. Couth. Pelagic. I have oc-
casionally found specimens of this shell in the stomachs of
haddock, taken in the open sea, many miles from land, in
very deep water, but I have never found a single fragment of
it upon any of our shores.
Genus Cochlodesma. Couth.
C (Anaiina,) leana, Con. Couth. 1 have found a few
specimens of this species in the stomachs of fishes, but never
in any other situation. That it inhabits the coast there can
be no doubt, as 1 once took a specimen from the stomach of
a haddock that was caught in the harbor, within a mile of
Portland.
Genus Thracia. Leach.
T. conradi, Couth. Pelagic. This rare and interesting
species is occasionally picked up on our sandy beaches after
violent easterly storms. I have a single valve which was
dredged by Capt. Walden, near the Fox Islands, off the mouth
of the Penobscot river, in very deep water.
T. truncata, Mighels. Pelagic. Hab. Casco Bay. I have
never found more than half a dozen specimens of this inter-
esting species, all of which were taken from the stomachs of
haddock, caught in very deep water several miles from land.
Genus Mactra. Desh.
M. gigantea, Lam. This huge species abounds on all our
sandy beaches, above and below low-water mark ; it however
attains its greatest size and perfection below that line. Cart-
loads are sometimes thrown upon Saco beach by easterly
storms. It is used by a few as an article of food, but it is not
generally esteemed. It is tough and indigestible, and I have
known some to be seriously injured by eating it. In a strong,
hardy man, it produced a severe colic, accompanied with ter-
rific spasms and entire loss of consciousness, which lasted
37*
316 Mighels' Catalogue of
several hours, and only ended with the ejection of the undi-
gested mass. I am not aware that it ever inhabits muddy
bottoms.
M. grandis, Desh. ? (ovalis, Gould.) This is probably a
true pelagic species, as it has not been obtained anywhere in
New England, but from fishes' stomachs, taken in deep water.
Although this name, grandis, is applied to another species by
Deshayes, 1 prefer to retain it until the identity of our shell
is better settled.
Immature specimens are frequently obtained from fishes'
stomachs taken in Casco Bay ; but, probably, its more conge-
nial habitat is much further north and east. Fine, large speci-
mens are sometimes obtained from the stomachs of cod-fishes
taken in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, but it must be regarded as
a rare shell.
Genus Mesodesma. Desh.
M. arctata, Con. Pelagic. Full grown specimens of this
species are occasionally found upon Saco beach, but I am not
aware that it is anywhere abundant in Maine. Never having
obtained it from the eastward, I am inclined to suspect that
this is nearly its utmost northern limit.
M.jauresii, Joannis. Pelagic. 1 am not aware that this
rare species has ever been found in the waters of Maine, but
it is occasionally found in the stomachs of cod-fishes caught
in the Gulf ot St. Lawrence, in very deep water.
Genus Saxicava. Lam.
S. distorta, Lin. Say. This species, although often found
alive on our shores, cannot, properly, be regarded as a littoral
shell. Its proper habitation is, doubtless, in deep water. I
have, occasionally, found dwarfish and very distorted speci-
mens adhering to pebbles and valves of dead shells in deep
cavities in the ledges near Fort Preble, where the water never
entirely leaves them. The finest specimens I ever saw, I
found attached to the inside of some dead specimens of Pec-
ten magellnnicus, dredged by Capt. Walden in deep wa-
the Shells of Maine. 317
ter near Machias. The largest of them are one and a half
inch in length. When recent and perfect, the epidermis
is continuous from one valve to the otlier.
Genus Petricola. Lam.
P. pholadiformis, Lam. Only a few imperfect valves and
fragments of this species have, as yet, been found in Maine.
These were picked up on Old Orchard beach, near Saco.
Genus Sanguinolaria. Lam.
S.fusco, Say, Con. This sliell abounds in all our still,
muddy bays, especially near the mouths of rivers and streams,
where the mud is deep, both above and below low-water
mark. It would also seem that it must be plenty in deep
water, as I have often found it, in considerable numbers, in
the stomachs of haddock.
Genus Tellina. Lin.
T. sordida, Couth. Pelagic. Dwarfish specimens of this
shell, about the size and appearance of those noticed by Dr.
Gould, (^Invert. Moss. p. 67,) are very frequently obtained
from fisfies' stomachs taken in Casco Bay, but its more con-
genial residence is much further north, where its generic char-
acters are more distinctly developed, and where it attains a
much larger size. A specimen now lies before me which was
taken, with many others of equal dimensions, in the Gulf of
St. Lawrence, which is L8 inch in length, LI in height,
and .5 in breadth.
Dr. Gould thinks "this shell belongs to the same genus as
Say's Fsammohia fusca,^^ and remarks that '' the slight wave
along the posterior margin is no more conspicuous than in
that shell." This remark will not apply even to the small
specimens found in Casco Bay, the flexure being much more
conspicuous than in any of the specimens of Say's shell,
vvhicli I have seen ; and in the St. Lawrence specimens it is
as fully developed as in most of the species of Tellino, and
much more so than in some species that are unhesitatingly
318 MigheW Catalogue of
referred to that genus by other writers. I cannot hesitate,
therefore, as to the propriety of restoring it to the place where
Mr. Couthouy originally placed it.
Genus Lucina. Brug.
L. ( Cryptodon,) Jlexuosa, Mont. Turton, Gould. Pelagic.
This delicate little shell is often obtained from the stomachs
of haddock, taken in deep water, in Casco Bay.
L. radula 1 Mont. (Gould's Invert. Mass. p. 69 and 70.) I
am indebted to Capt. Walden for a perfect specimen of a
shell which I suppose may be identical with that referred to
by Dr. Gould. Capt. W. obtained it with some other species
which gave me equal surprise, at Nashe's island, near Machias.
It was thrown on shore by the sea. I do not perceive that
it differs, essentially, from West Indian specimens of L. ti-
^erzw«,Lam. It nearly accords with Dr. G.'s description of
L. radula, but differs in the hinge margin being slightly curv-
ed, in having two cardinal teeth in each valve, and a distinct,
lateral tooth, anterior to the beak, in each valve. The nym-
phal and umbonial margins in my specimen, are colored by a
slight stain of pink, which is not noticed by Dr. G. This,
however, may be owing to the fact that his specimens were
dead and bleached, — and it may, also, be owing to this cir-
cumstance, that the specimens differ so much in the number
and perfection of their teeth.
Genus Cyclas. Lin.
C similis, Say. This species is found burrowing in mud
and sand, in great abundance and perfection, in ponds and
brooks, in all parts of the State west of the Kennebeck river.
I know nothing of it further east, although I have no reason
to doubt that it occurs all over the State. Little stagnant
ponds and bayous, where the water is shallow and the mud
deep and soft, seem to be the favorite habitations of this spe-
cies.
C. partumeia, Say. This also occurs in great profusion all
over the State, so far as I am acquainted. It differs in no re-
the Shells of Maine. 319
spect from Massachusetts specimens. It differs considerably
from the preceding species in its liabits, seeming to prefer wet
places rather than the open water. I have found it in the
greatest profusion in the crevices, and under the bark of de-
caying timber, floating in ponds.
C. calycuhita 1 Drap. That this is, in reality, identical
with C. calyculata of Europe, I cannot positively aver, —
this much, however, it will be safe to say, so far as the shells
are concerned, they are perfectly alike. I have found it plenty
in running brooks, under stones.
C minor, Adams and Migh. I have found this delicate
little species abundant in a spring, within the limits of this
city. In its habit of burrowing, it differs from other species
with which I am acquainted. It is often found six inches un-
der ground, under stone.«, one or two feet from the water.
I have received specimens from Monmouth, (forty or fifty
miles from Portland.) It is also abundant in Vermont.
C. nitida, Migh. This is, doubtless, a rare species, as I
have never detected it but at one locality, (Norway, Oxford
county,) where I obtained about half a dozen specimens. It
was in company with C. partumeia.
Genus Astarte. Sow.
A. undn(a, Gould. Pelagic. Immature specimens are fre-
quently obtained from the stomachs of haddock taken far out
at sea, in very deep water, in Casco Bay. I have obtained
many fine mature specimens of it by dredging in Portland
harbor, where the water is from four to six fathoms in depth,
and the mud very deep and soft.
Not doubting that this is distinct from all the known species
of Europe, I have not hesitated to adopt the name proposed
for it by Dr. Gould, (Invert. Mass. p. 80.)
A. castanco, Say. Pelagic. Rare, but occasionally found
on some of our sandy beaches, after heavy easterly storms.
A. quadrnns, Gould. Pelagic. This is found sparingly in
fishes' stomachs, taken in very deep water in Casco Bay. I
have found several specimens considerably larger than that
320 Mighels' Catalogue of
described by Dr. Gould. I am of opinion that all the speci-
mens yet found are immature.
A. lactea, Brod. and Sow. Pelagic. Through a fisher-
man 1 have recently had the good fortune to obtain three fine
specimens of this rare species, the largest of which is 1.6 inch
in length, 1.3 in height. In one of the specimens, (the small-
est,) the epidermis is of a straw color, in both the others it is
black. The fisherman took them from the stomachs of cod-
fishes captured in the Gulf of St. Lawrence. I know not that
it has ever been found in the waters of Maine.
A, portlandica, Migh. Pelagic. I found a single speci-
men of this species in the stomach of a haddock, in the spring
of 1842. The fish was taken in Casco Bay, many miles from
land, in deep water. Besides other obvious characteristics, it
is readily distinguished from its congeners by its chocolate-co-
lored interior.
Genus Cyprina. Lam.
C. islandica, Lin. Pelagic. Fine, large specimens of this shell
are frequently thrown upon Old Orchard beach, near the
mouth of Saco river. Very young specimens are found in
great abundance in fishes' stomachs, taken all along the coast.
Genus Cytherea. Lam.
C. convexa, Say. Pelagic. 1 have occasionally taken this
shell by dredging in Portland harbor, and it is occasionally
thrown upon our beaches by the sea, but it is extremely rare.
Genus Venus. Lin.
V. mercenaria, Lin. This species is rarely found in Casco
Bay, but it occurs in great abundance and perfection at Harps-
well, from whence it is brought to Portland market and sold
at ten or twelve cents per dozen. The specimens are much
larger than those which are brought here by the oystermen
from VVellfleet, Mass.
V. notato, Say. 1 have one specimen of this shell, which
was given me by a gentleman, who found it in a bucket of
the Shells of Maine. 321
clams, which were dug up somewhere in the vicinity of this
city. It differs in no respect from Massachusetts specimens.
V. fluctuosa, Govi\d. Pelagic. I have had the good for-
tune to obtain three or four specimens of this species, which
were obtained in the Gulf of St. Lawrence by a fisherman,
from stomachs of cod-fishes. It has not been found in
Maine.
V. gemma, Tott. Littoral, and plentiful in muddy bays,
all along the coast.
Besides these species, Capt. Walden has recently given me
a specimen of a Venus which he obtained at Nashe's Island,
which much resembles Cytherea dione, Lam., without the
spines. Whether this is truly an inhabitant of the waters of
Maine or was imported in some way, is a question not easily
settled. Capt. Walden, however, is very certain that it in-
habits that locality.
Genus Cardium. Lin.
C. islandicum, Lin. Pelagic. Immature specimens are
found, plentifully, in fishes' stomachs taken in Casco Bay. In
the Gulf of St. Lawrence and on the coast of Labrador, fine,
large specimens are occasionally taken from the stomachs of a
species of fish called by the fishermen, sond-dah, which, from
their description, I suppose to be some species of Platessa, of
Cuvier.
C grcenlandicum, Chemn. (Aphrodite Columba, Lea.^
Pelagic. Found rarely, in fishes' stomachs, in the Gulf of St.
Lawrence and on the Grand Banks ; I do not know that it has
been found in Maine.
I have deemed it best, under present circumstances, to place
this shell under Cardium, — nevertheless, I am much inclined
to the opinion of Mr. Lea, respecting its generic characters,
and have very little doubt that it will eventually be restored
to the place to which he assigned it, with universal consent.
C. pinnulatum, Con. Pelagic. This is found plentifully,
in Casco Bay. It seems to be the favorite food of the had-
dock, as it is rare to find that fish without more or less of
322 MigheW Catalogue of
this shell in its stomach. I think I have taken more than one
hundred out of a single individual. It occurs on all the coast,
and as far north as Labrador.
Genus Cardita. Lam.
C lor calls, Con. Pelagic. I have taken this species by
the dredge in Portland harbor, and immature specimens are
common in fishes' stomachs taken in Casco Bay. Capt. Wal-
den has dredged it as far east as Lubec, and Dr. Ray has
found it at Eastport. I have, also, found it among the shells
from the Gulf and the Banks.
Genus Arca. Lin.
A (Species nnknown.) A single valve, of a species
strongly resembling A. staminea, Say, was brought to me with
other well known species, by a fisherman, from the Gulf of
St. Lawrence. I am not aware that any species of this genus
has ever been detected, before, north of Cape Cod. Having
found only this odd valve, I have hesitated as to the propriety
of describing it, or of affixing to it a specific name, — if, how-
ever, future researches should establish its northern habitat,
and it should prove to be distinct, I would name it A. gla-
cialis.
Genus Nucula. Lam.
As will abundantly appear, this genus is numerously repre-
sented in Casco Bay. The species are all pelagic, and for all,
with the exception of N. limatula, we are dependent on the
stomachs of fishes, and of this (N. limatula,) even, immature
specimens are not un frequently found in company with all the
other species.
N. limatula, Say. This fine species occurs in Portland har-
bor in great perfection, though not so abundant as might be
inferred from an incidental remark by Dr. Gould (Invert. Mass,
p. 9S.) Three men, with a good dredge and boat, by work-
ing hard a whole summer's day, would do well to obtain thirty
specimens. I doubt not that the shells are plenty enough, but
the Shells of Maine. 323
owing to their habit of boring deep into the mud, the dredge
slips over them, capturing those only which happen to be near
the surface.
The whole animal is of an uniform, light flesh color — it is
very active and sprightly, — is very tenacious of life, and will
often leap about in an astonishing manner, for half an hour or
more, after being removed from its shell. When at rest, the
foot is nearly lancet shaped. In making a leap, it suddenly
thrusts forward this living stiletto to the extent of an inch or
more. — when extended to its utmost, the beholder for the
first time, is astonished to see it suddenly transformed into a
kind of parasol, and his astonishment instantly merges into
admiration, when, at that moment, he sees the shell darting
forward with the rapidity of an arrow. When the animal is
undisturbed, these evolutions are performed very rapidly and
for a considerable length of time. It is thus manifest how
perfectly it is adapted to its situation, and with what facility it
is capable of cutting its way through its muddy habitation.
J\'. thraciceformis, Storer. This species is very rarely found.
I have obtained a few small specimens from haddock's stom-
achs taken in Casco Bay, but have never had the good fortune
to find it full grown.
N. proxima, Say. Plentiful.
N. minuta, Gmelin, Turt. Considerably plentiful.
N. tenuis, Mont. Turt. Common.
N. myalis, Couth. This species is often found, but is not
plentiful in Casco Bay. In the northern part of the Gulf of
St. Lawrence it is more abundant and considerably larger.
N. navicularis, Couth. Very rare in Casco Bay.
N. sajwiilla, Gould. Often found, but not in plenty.
N. rostrata, INIont. I have detected this species among
other shells from the Gulf of St. Lawrence. Ii is readilv dis-
tinguished from N. minuta, Turt., by being shorter, and more
inflated anteriorly. It is rare.
N.jacksonii, (fossil,) Gould. This rare species is occa-
sionally found in the post-tertiary formation at Westbrook,
and Mr. True informs me that he lias found it in a clav bank
at Gardiner.
324 MigheW Catalogue of
N. antiqua, (fossil,) Migh. This is found, sparingly, in
company with the preceding species.
N. dtlphinodonta, Migh. I am not aware that this species
has been found anywhere but in Casco Bay. In the spring
of 1841, I found it for the first time plenty, subsequently it
has been rarely seen.
N. cascdensis, Migh. Hab. Casco Bay. T detected a single
fine specimen of this species in the spring of 1840.
N. porflandica, (fossil,) Hitchcock. This species occurs
somewhat plentifully at Westbrook. I have also received it
from Saco, and Brunswick, and am informed that it occurs at
Gardiner. The geological formation is identical at all the lo-
calities.
Genus Unio. Brug.
U. complanatus, Soland. This variable species occurs in
very great abundance in this State. In small collections of
still water where the bottom is muddy, it attains the greatest
magnitude and perfection. It sometimes occurs in running
w^ater, in pebbly beds, where it is observed to be much com-
pressed, distorted, and eroded. In open lakes, in sandy
beds, it is usually diminutive, and much compressed.
U. radiatus, Gmel. Barnes. This species is plenty at some
localities, but is far less common than the preceding. A va-
riety! is occasionally found, which differs so much from the
common type that I have supposed it must be the siliquoideus
of Barnes. Recent observations, however, would seem to
show that the specific distinctions between radiatus and sili-
quoideus are by no means definitely settled. I therefore pre-
fer to regard it at present as a mere variety of radiatus. Pro-
fessor Adams remarks, that he is at a loss in distinguishing
between Vermont specimens of U. siliquoideus and U. radia-
tus. However this may be, there is no difficulty in discover-
ing the difference between what he regards as siliquoideus of
Vermont, and what I regard as radiatus of Maine.
U. ochraceus, Say. This species occurs in the Kennebeck
river. Rare.
tJie Shells of Maine. 325
Besides the above, I have received several specimens of an
Unio from Monmouth, concerning whose specific characters I
am much perplexed ; it may prove to be new.
Genus Alasmodon. Say.
A. arcunta, Barnes. This species is plentiful all over the
State. The largest and best specimens are found in small
sluggish streams, in muddy places. Dr. Gould remarks that
he has never found it near the sea-board. I have. It occurs
plentifully at Cape Elizabeth, near the sea.
Specimens from different localities differ much among them-
selves, beinsf more or less curved, or elongated, and some are
perfectly straight, differing in no respect from U. sinuosa and
elongata of Lamarck, from Germany and France. With Mr.
Lea, I believe them to be identical.
A. undulaia. Say. This is extensively distributed over the
State, and plentiful.
A. marginata, Say. Often found, but not plentiful.
An extraordinary variety of this, or (which is more proba-
ble to me) a new species, occurs at Easrport. Tlie late Dr.
C. J. Ward thought it might be A. radiata, Con. Not having
had an opportunity to compare it with that species, I am still
compelled to leave it in doubt.
Genus Anodox. Brug.
A. caiaracta, Say. Widely distributed over the State. In
ponds it is large and comparatively thick, resembling speci-
mens from South Carolina. In sluggish, muddy streams, it is
more abundant, but of a smaller size, and mucli tliinner.
A. marginata, Say. Elongated specimens of this species,
resembling, externally, A. ftrussaciatia, Lea, occur at Aor-
way, Oxford county. I doubt the propriety of separating it
from the preceding species. It differs no more from it than
many established species differ among themselves, nor half as
much as acknowledged varieties of U. camplanatus.
A. impVicata, Say. The only locality where this species is
known to exist in the State, is in a pond near Eastport. This
326 MigheW Catalogue of
is the variety (if indeed it is a variety,) which Mr. Lea de-
scribed as a new species, under the name of A. newtonensis.
It is plentiful at the place referred to.
Genus Mytilus. Lin.
M. edulis, Lin. This is the only species of the genus
that occurs north of Cape Cod. It is distributed over the
whole coast of Maine from Piscataqua to Passamaquoddy ;
and in some of our quiet bays it congregates in countless mil-
hons, whence it is often carted off by our farmers, in the winter
season, deposited in heaps, and in the spring distributed over
their fields for manure. It is not used as food in Maine.
The variety M, pelhcidus of Pennant is abundant. I have
observed it to be most so on the unprotected coast, near low-
water mark, attached to ledges and pebbles with a shorter bis-
sus than that which belongs to the more common variety.
Genus Modiola. Lam.
M. modiolus, Lin. This species is plentiful on all our
shores, it is sometimes thrown up by storms in immense
quantities, and is carted off by the farmers for manure. It is
found abundantly on some of the islands in Casco Bay, above
low-water mark, whence it is procured by the islanders and
sold in the market as an article of food, which is highly es-
teemed by some. I once found it plenty near Fort Preble, in
company with Saxicava distoria, just above low-water mark,
during a spring tide. It is proper, however, to remark that
they were so situated that they were never left by the water.
M. plicatula, Lam. This species does not occur in Casco
Bay. 1 have inserted it on the authority of Dr. Jackson's
" Report on the Geology of MaincJ^
M. nexa, Gould. Pelagic. Extremely rare in Casco Bay.
I have found it in no other situation but in the stomachs of
haddock.
M. pectinula, Gould. I am indebted to a fisherman for a
single specimen of this shell, which he took from the stomach
of a cod-fish, caught in the Gulf of St. Lawrence.
the Shells of Maine. 327
M. (mytilus,) cliscrepnns, Mont. Pelagic. A very few ma-
ture specimens have been taken with the dredge in Portland
harbor. Small ones are frequently found in fishes' stomachs
taken in Casco Bay.
M. gJandula, Tott. This small species occurs plentifully
on all \\\e fishing grounds from Massachusetts Bay to the Gulf
of St. Lawrence. It is a true pelagic species. I know not
that it has ever been detected with the dredge.
Genus Pecten. Turt.
P. mageUanicus, Gmelen. Pelagic. Capt. Walden has often
dredged this species at Eastport and ^lachias. He informs
me that it is made much account of by the inhabitants on the
eastern shore as an article of food. He once honored my
table with a liberal mess of them, which, according to his ad-
vice we fried in butter, from which 1 can testify that they are
truly dehcious, far exceeding (in my view) the oyster, in rich-
ness and delicacy of flavor. The muscular portion only is
edible, the mantle and abdominal mass being very tough and
indigestible. They sometimes occur in Casco Bay, but for
many years they have been rarely found.
P. tenuicostatus, Nob., I am now fully convinced is nothing
more than the very young of P. mageUanicus. Capt. W. found
them of all ages at Nashe's Island, with which 1 have been
enabled to form a series, from the size of a dime to that of
six or seven inches in width — from which it is plainly to be
seen that they gradually and almost imperceptibly merge in
each other.
P. islandicus, Muller. Pelagic. Rare in Casco Bay. The
Gulf fishermen have furnished me with a few fine large speci-
mens, which they say they took from the stomachs of sand-
dabs. They accord perfectly with European specimens.
Genus Ostrea. Lin.
O. horealis, Lam. A few dwarfish specimens of this spe-
cies have been found at the Green Islands, in Casco Bay.
Never having been able to hear of it further northward, I am
328 Mighels' Catalogue of
of opinion this is the utmost northern linait of the species. It
however occurs in a fossil state, of a large size, in a post-ter-
tiary bed, on the coast of Cumberland, ten or twelve miles
east of Portland.
I am at a loss to conceive how any living species of oyster
of the United States, should have been confounded with Ostrea
eduUs, Lin. I say living species, because I have received
fossil specimens of O. edulis, from the banks of the Potomac,
near Washington, which perfectly accord with those of Europe,
but differ widely from all our living species.
Captain Walden has presented me with the lower valve of
an oyster, (or Efheria) which he dredged somewhere east of
Portland, which I cannot make out. It certainly cannot be
confounded with the species found at the Green Islands. It is
four inches long, one inch wide, and appears to have been
fixed upon the convex surface of a stone of soft texture, per-
haps limestone.
Genus Anomia. Lam.
A. ephippium, Lister. Lin. Distorted, dwarfish speci-
mens of this species are occasionally found on our shores.
Whether it has colonized our stormy coast from choice or acci-
dent, I am unable to say ; one thing is clear, however, what-
ever its motive has been, that it has found an uncongenial
climate.
A. aculeata, Gmelin. Shell pelagic. This species is often
found attached to the roots of marine plants, pebbles and
other shells, which are thrown ashore by storms. I have, also,
often found it fastened to the backs and claws of the larger
Crustacea.
Besides these, there are several others found in the State,
which I doubt not are distinct species ; not, however, being
able to ascertain whether they have been described, or indeed
to separate them definitely, I have deemed it best to pass by
them. They all occur as far north and east as Passamaquoddy
Bay.
the Shells of Maine. 329
Genus Terebratula. Brug.
T. caput-serpentis, Lin. Pelagic. Diminutive specimens
of this interesting shell are ibund rather plentifully in the
stomachs of haddock taken in Casco Bay. The largest and
finest specimens I have seen were dredged by Captain Walden
near the Fox Islands. A specimen now lies before me 1.4
inch in height, 1.1 inch in width. It inhabits very deep water.
A fisherman brought me a stone which he fished up with a
cod hook, in (he says) 75 fathoms of water ! It was covered
with fine specimens of this shell.
T. psittacea, Gmelin. Pelagic. I am not aware that this
species occurs in the waters of Maine. In the summer of 1841,
a fisherman gave me twenty-seven specimens which he took
from the stomachs of sand-dahs in the Gulf of St. Law-
rence. A specimen now before me is .8 inch in height, .7 inch
in length and .5 inch in breadth. This is the largest ; most of
them were much smaller.
Genus Chiton. Lin.
C IcBvigatus, Flem. (^C.fulminaius, Couth.) Small speci-
mens of this species are found, sparingly, in fishes' stom-
achs caught in Casco Bay. Dr. Ray has found it on the rocks
at Eastport, during spring tides, above low-water mark. A
specimen of whicii, now before me, is 1.2 inch in length.
Never having detected it here, (at Portland) in a similar situ-
ation, I infer that its more congenial habitat is further north.
Having had an opportunity of comparing it with a specimen
of C. IfKvigatus, in the cabinet of Dr. Gould, of Boston, from
Sweden, wjiere it is said to be common, I have no doubt of
their identity.
C. ruber, Lowe. Pelagic. Taken from fishes' stomachs
caught in Casco Bay. Rare.
C. (tlljusj Mont. Pelagic. This, with the following spe-
cies, is found in company with the preceding. Rare.
C. emersouli, Couth.
C. mcndicarius, Migh. Pelagic. The only specimen of
38
330 MigheW Catalogue of
this species which has yet been found, I took from the stomach
of a haddock in 1841.
Genus Patella. Lin.
P. Candida, Couth, Pelagic. Rare. Although I have
examined several hundred bushels of the entrails of fishes, I
have never found more than eight or ten specimens of this
shell. I have always found them in the stomachs of haddock
taken in very deep water.
P. amcena, Say. Littoral, — and abundant on the whole
line of coast, from Piscataqua to Passamaquoddy. It is very
variable in its markings ; some specimens are nearly white,
others are black, and some are beautifully mottled, striped,
speckled, &c. The largest and most beautiful specimens I
have seen were sent me by Dr. Ray, from Eastport, — one
now in my cabinet is Ig inch in length.
P. alveus, Con. This species is often found on the shores
of Casco Bay, but is not common.
Genus Dentalium. Lin.
D. enialis, Lin. Pelagic. I have frequently found this
species in fishes' stomachs taken in Casco Bay, and Captain
Walden has dredged it in Penobscot Bay.
D. dentale, Lin. Pelagic. Having found only a single,
imperfect specimen of this species, I conclude it is very rare.
This was taken from the stomach of a haddock caught far out
at sea in very deep water.
Genus Ce5ioria. Leach.
C. (Patella,) noachina. Pelagic. This species is frequently
obtained from fishes' stomachs taken in Casco Bay.
C. princeps, Migh. Pelagic. This species inhabits very
deep water. I have never obtained but four or five specimens,
all of which were taken from the stomachs of fishes caught off
the mouth of the Kennebeck, nearly one hundred miles from
land, on fishing ground known by fishermen by the name of
Monhegan Falls. The depth of water here, is from forty to
seventy-five fathoms.
the Shells of Maine. 331
Genus Hipponix ? Sowerby.
H. (species wiknown.) . . . Pelagic. The first,
and only good specimen of this curious little shell, which I
found, was in the spring of 1840. This I took from the
stomach of a haddock, caught in Casco Bay. 1 have subse-
quently obtained another specimen, but too imperfect for
description. I have but little doubt that they belong to the
same genus as Sowerby's Hipponix.
Genus CALYPXRiCA. Lam.
C. striata, Say. Pelagic. I have obtained several fine
specimens of this interesting species by dredging in Portland
harbor. I have always found them resting upon the valves of
the Astarte undata. Captain Walden has dredged a few speci-
mens near the Fox Islands.
Genus Crepidula. Lam.
C. (Patella,) fornicata, Lin. Pelagic. This species is
often thrown upon our shores by storms. Captain Walden
recently found it adhering to the lower valves of Pecten magel-
lanicus, which he dredged near the Fox Islands.
C. plana, Say. I have never found but one individual of
this species in Casco Bay ; this had located itself within the
mouth of a dead Buccinum undatum. It is much thicker than
any one I have seen from Massachusetts.
Genus Bulla.
All the recent species of this genus, found in Maine, are
pelagic, and have all been taken from the stomachs of fishes.
B. gouldii. Couth. Very rare. I have never found but
one well marked individual.
B. dchilis, Gould. Plentiful.
B. triticea. Couth. Found occasionally, but rare.
B. lineolata. Couth. I have never found more than five or
six of this species.
38*
332 Mighels' Catalogue of
B. oryza, Tott. Only one specimen has been found in
the waters of the State, to my knowledge.
B. puncto-striata, Migh. I have found only a single indi-
vidual of this fine species.
B. pertenuis, Migh. This minute species is found occa-
sionally, but is rare.
B, occulta, (fossil.) Migh. This occurs in the post-ter-
tiary formation at Westbrook, in company with Nucula port-
landica, Hk. Rare.
Genus Helix. Lin,
H, albolahris, Say. This species occurs, solitary, in all
parts of the State, and on some of the islands in Casco Bay,
but I am not aware that it is anywhere in plenty. It is of
rather smaller size than specimens from the Southern and
Western States.
H. thyroidus, Say. I insert this species on the authority of
Dr. C. T. Jackson, {^^ Report on the Geology of Maine.^') I
have not found it.
H. hortensis, Muller. Captain Walden has recently detected
this species on a little island in Casco Bay. It must be very
plenty, as he obtained more than five hundred specimens in a
few hours, and says he could have obtained many more. He
informs me that he found them buried deep in the loose soil,
under fragments of wood, and at the roots of plants. Half a
dozen or more were often found occupying the same burrow.
This does not accord with the observations of Dr. Binney.
He says, ^' it does not appear to burrow under stones or de-
caying wood and leaves, but is found on the surface of the
ground." My specimens are much more beautifully banded
than those of Massachusetts. Most of them have five dark
brown bands on a yellow ground ; some four, some two, and a
few none. Some have light fawn-colored bands on a white
ground ; in others, in place of colored bands, the yellow
ground is interrupted with nearly transparent zones. One
beautiful specimen is heterostrophed.
Tlie island is nearly covered by the sea at high water ; only
a few square rods are above high-water mark.
the Shells of Maine, 333
H. fraternOf Say. I prefer to retain Say's name for this
shell, believing it to be distinct from H. monodon, of the West-
ern States. It is quite common in forests, and on hill-sides in
open pastures, under old logs and stumps and leaves, in damp
places.
H. pulchella, Muller. This pretty little species may be
found at any time during the warm season, in gardens and
by the way-side in this city, wherever it can find a wet chip
lar^re enoui^h to hide itself under.
H, alteniaia, Say. Shell gregarious, abundant. Several
hundred, old and young, are frequently found within the space
of a few inches, in old logs and stumps. It inhabits all parts
of the State, including some of the islands in Casco Bay. It
probably inhabits all the States in the Union, as I have received
specimens of it from both sides of the mountains, and recently
several specimens from Alabama, through professor Brumby.
H. striateUa, x\nthony. Found in great abundance in all
parts of the State, in and about old decaying wood, and under
damp leaves.
H. lineata. Say. Found in com.pany with the preceding,
but not plenty.
H. mdeniata, Say. Mr. True has found this species at
Monmouth ; it however appears to be rare.
H. arborea, Say. This is common everywhere, under stones,
and about old stumps and logs. I cannot perceive any char-
acters by which to distinguish this species from H. lucida,
Drap. of Europe.
H. lahyrinthica, Say. Found sparingly, in company with
most of the small species.
H. electrina, Gould. i\Ir. True has found this species at
Monmouth ; it is, however, rare.
H. chersina, Say. I have found a few specimens of this
species in company with H. lahijrinthica. If not the same
thing, it is certainly very nearly allied to H. fuha, Muller.
H. sayi, Binney. This fine species is found at Monmouth
and at Bangor.
334 Mighey Catalogue of
Genus Pupa. Lam.
P. contracta, Say. Through Mr. Blake, I have received a
few specimens of this from Bangor.
P. modesta, Say. I have found a very few specimens of
this species near the Cape Cottage at Cape Ehzabeth. It has
also been detected in the interior of the State.
P. curvidens, Gould, (pentodon, Say.) Found with P. con-
tracta, at Bangor.
P. exigna, Say. Mr. True has found a few specimens at
Monmouth. Through him 1 have also received several speci-
mens of a Pupa which appear to me to accord perfectly with
Say's description of his P. ovata.
Genus Bulimus. Brug.
B. luhricus, Muller. Brug. Mr. True has detected this
species at Monmouth, and I have found it under damp leaves
at Cape Elizabeth, near the sea.
Genus Succinea. Drap.
*S'. campesiris, Say. Gould. Adams. I have found this
species most abundant in forests, under heaps of damp leaves ;
it is, however, frequently found in cultivated fields. I once
found it in plenty on a dry clay bank, larger than common, and
with a remarkable obliquity of the spire, which, I presume,
may be Say's S. obliqua. It probably inhabits all the States
in the Union ; and if Dr. Gould is right in his surmise, that it
is identical with S. amphibia, Lam. of Europe, (of which,
however, I am* more than doubtful,) it surely has a wide
range 1
*S^. avara, Say. Found by Mr. True, at Monmouth.
S. ovalis. Say. I have often found this species on the
margins of ponds, adhering to the stocks of aquatic plants
and bits of floating wood, just at the edge of the water, where
the surface is always wet.
the Shells of Maine. 335
Genus Planorbis. Mull.
P. trivolvis, Say. Dr. Milliken has found a few specimens
in a pond at Unity.
P. lentus, Say. Found at Unity, in company with P. tri-
volvis. It differs in no respect from Vermont specimens,
which Professor Adams has confounded with P. corpulentus,
of the Western States, which is certainly distinct.
P. bicarinatus, Say. This species occurs in most of our
ponds and brooks where the water is quiet, but I am not aware
that it is abundant anywhere.
P. campanulatus, Say. This abounds in all parts of the
State.
P. armigerus, Say. Mr. True has found this in plenty at
Monmouth. It occurs at Bangor of larger size than at Mon-
mouth.
P. elevatus, Adams. I have detected a few specimens of
this species ? in a spring within the limits of this city.
P. deflectus, Say. I have frequently found this shell in
ponds, clinging to bits of floating wood, &c., but I am not
aware that it is anywhere plenty.
P. exacutus, Say. Solitary specimens are often found in
most of our collections of fresh water. At Norway, Oxford
county, I once found it in plenty, ensconced in the crevices of
old decayed oak logs, lying at the margin of a pond. I think
it always prefers oak wood.
P. parvus, Say. This species is often seen in great num-
bers, resting upon the stocks of small aquatic plants, in shallow
water, where it is still and warm.
Genus Physa. Drap.
P. hetcrostropha, Say. This species abounds in gi'eat pro-
fusion in all parts of tiie State. Quiet pools seem to be its
favorite habitations ; it however occurs abundantly in rapid
streams.
P. ancillaria, Say. This has been found in various parts
of the State. I am indebted to Mr. A. W. Longfellow for
336 Mighels' Catalogue of
specimens from 2d Eagle Lake, Maine, in N. lat. 47°. In
one specimen, the spire is not elevated above the penultimate
whorl.
P. hypjiorwn, Drap. (P. elongata, Say.) There can no
longer be a doubt as to the identity of this species. It occurs
at Monmouth, and in a swamp near Bangor.
P. gyrina, Say. Mr. True has found this species at Mon-
mouth. Among some specimens received from him, I find
several that differ in no respect from P. osculans, Haldeman,
from Mexico, which appears to me to be nothing more than
an elongated variety of P. ancillaria.
P. fragilis, Migh. Found at Monmouth by ^Mr. True. Be-
sides its extreme tenuity, it is readily distinguished from all its
congeners by the elevated lamina upon the columellar lip. It
inhabits the muddy bottom of a mill pond, in deep water, and
is found only when the water is drawn off.
Genus Limnea. Lam.
L. columella, Say. This, and the variety clialyhea, Gould,
is found in most of the fresh water collections in the State. I
have received the finest specimens from Brunswick. The
black variety of Gould is uniformly more elongated than the
usual type of L. columella, and appears to me to be much
more worthy of a place as a distinct species than many others
which are admitted without hesitation.
L. humilis, Say. Several varieties of this species are found
in different parts of the State. I have observed an umbili-
cated variety in little puddles within the limits of the city,
that entirely dry up and disappear in the drought of summer.
How are the animals sustained during these seasons ?
L. desidiosa, Say. Found in the counties of Cumberland
and Kennebeck. Dwarfish, — rare.
L. decollata, Migh. Although I entertain the highest re-
spect for the opinion of ]\Ir. Haldeman, I cannot agree with
him in regarding this as a variety of L. catascopium, Say. I
do not think there is a striking resemblance between it and
the specimens he has introduced to illustrate his opinion, (Mo-
the Shells of Maine. 337
nograph No. 5, PI. 14, figs. 1, 4, and 5, excepting 4, '^a dis-
torted " specimen from Oregon, which bemg distorted, is en-
titled to no consideration whatever, if indeed it belongs to that
species?) Entertaining these views, I cannot abandon it with-
out more positive testimony. It inhabits a pond in the town
of Unity, where I am informed by Dr. Milhken, its discoverer,
it sometimes occurs in great numbers.
L. ampla, Migh. For a description of this fine species, the
reader is referred to another part of this Journal. It inhabits
the 2d Eagle Lake, Maine, N. lat. 47°. 1 am indebted to
Mr. A. W. Longfellow for four specimens, no two of which
are exactly alike.
Genus Amnicola. Gould and Hald.
A. lustrica, Say. Found sparingly, in small stream.s and
springs, at several localities.
A. jjorata, Say. Found at Monmouth by Mr. True, to
whom I am indebted for specimens.
Genus Paludina. Lam.
P. decisa, Say. This species occurs as far north as
2d Eagle Lake, lat. 47°, and is very abundant every-
where.
Genus Valvata. Muller.
V. pujjoidea, Gould. Found at Monmouth by Mr. True.
Rare.
Genus Ancylus. Muller.
A. rivularis, Say. Found in plenty, clinging to the under
side of the leaves of the yellow lily, (yuphar advcnaj Lin.^
in ditches and sluggish streams.
Genus Natica. Brug.
N. heros. Say. Littoral, and abundant near low-water mark
on all our sandy and muddy shores. I have traced it as far
north and east as the Bay of Fundy.
338 Mighels' Catalogue of
N. triseriata, Say. Littoral, abundant, and found in com-
pany with the preceding.
N. immaculata, Tott. Pelagic, found in plenty in the sto-
machs of haddock taken in Casco Bay.
N. pusilla, Say. Pelagic, found sparingly, with the pre-
ceding.
N. clausa, Brod. and Sovvb. (iV. consolidata, Couth.) Found
very plentifully, in company with the two preceding species.
N. Jlava, Gould. Pelagic, taken from fishes' stomachs,
rarely, in the Gulf of St. Lawrence.
Genus Velutina. Blain.
V. laevigata, Lin. Pelagic, found somewhat plentifully in
the stomachs of haddock taken in Casco Bay. When mature,
it accords perfectly with European specimens. A specimen
now before me, found by Capt. Walden, at Nashe's Island, is
.7 inch in length, and .6 inch in width.
V, zonata, Gould. Found in company with the preceding
species. Rare.
Genus Sigaretus. Lam.
S. haliotoideus, Lin. Pelagic. Very rare. Found in
fishes' stomachs taken in very deep water, in Casco Bay. The
animal is of a pure white, and entirely encloses the shell. It
accords in most respects with Montagu's description, (^British
Shells, p. 212, 213) excepting in color.
Genus Skenia. Flem.
S. serpuloides, Mont. Littoral, — found occasionally cling-
ing to the under side of wet stones, above low-water mark.
Genus Scalaria. Lin.
S. grcenlandica, Chemn. Pelagic, — very rarely found in
fishes' stomachs caught in Casco Bay and Gulf of St. Law-
rence.
the Shells of Maine. 339
Genus Margarita. Leach.
All the species of this genus are pelagic, and from nume-
rous observations I am of opinion they all inhabit similar lo-
calities in the bosom of the great deep. Most of the small
species of pelagic shells are found mixed with mud ; these
are found, generally, mixed with sand, or gravel, or small peb-
bles.
M, cinerea. Couth. This occurs in Casco Bay, rarely. It is
more abundant in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, where it is much
larger.
M. obscura, Couth. Rare in Casco Bay, more plentiful far-
ther north.
M. undulata, Sowb. This species was found rather plenti-
fully in Casco Bay, in 1840, but very rarely since. It attains
a much larger size in the Gulf of St. Lawrence. An imper-
fect specimen now before me is .7 inch across the base.
M. arctica, Leach. Mature specimens are rare. I have
found very small specimens of a bright red color, (which I
suppose to be the young) quite plentiful.
M. argentata, Gould. Frequently found.
31. acuminata, Sowb. Hab. Gulf of St. Lawrence. I have
obtained only a single specimen.
M. varicosa, Migh. Only two specimens of this species
have been found ; they accompanied the preceding.
Genus Trochus. Lin.
T. occidenfalis, Migh. Pelagic. Hab. Casco Bay, in
great depths of water. Very rare.
Genus Littorina. Ferus.
L. (Turbo) ruclis, Donovan. (Turbo obJigatus, Say.)
L. (Turbo) tcuebrosa, Mont. (Turbo vestitus, Say.^
L. (Turbo) palliata, Say. These three species of Litto-
rijia occur in the greatest profusion, covering the rocks and
marine plants on the whole coast from Piscataqua to Passama-
quoddy, but how much farther north and east, I am unin-
formed.
340 Mighels^ Catalogue of
Genus Lacuna. Turton.
L. vincta, Mont. Often found dead upon our beaches, but
it is not plentiful.
L. neritoidea, Gould. I have obtained two specimens only,
of this shell, — both from the stomachs of haddock taken in
Casco Bay.
Genus Cingula. Flem.
C. (Turbo) minuta, Tott. Littoral. Plentiful in all our
quiet coves and bays, in little pools above low-water mark.
C. aculeus, Gould. Littoral. Found plentifully near high-
water mark, clinging to the under side of stones, on all our
shores.
C. (Turbo) semicostata. Mont. Pelagic. Found, rarely, in
fishes' stomachs taken in Casco Bay.
C (Turbo) arenario, Mont. Found in company with the
preceding. Very rare.
C. latior, Migh. Found in the stomachs of haddock, caught
in very deep water in Casco Bay. Very rare.
Genus Turritella. Lam.
T. erosa, Couth. Pelagic. Imperfect individuals are fre-
quently found in haddocks' stomachs taken in Casco Bay.
Perfectly fresh specimens, however, are very rare. It also in-
habits the Gulf of St. Lawrence.
T. cosiulata, Migh. Pelagic. Hab. Casco Bay. I have
obtained two specimens of this species ; one from the sto-
mach of a haddock, the other was dredged by Capt. Wal-
den.
T. reticulata, Migh. Pelagic. Hab. Gulf of St. Law-
rence. Several specimens were found in the stomach of
a sand-dab by a fisherman in the summer of 1841.
Genus Pyramis. Brown.
P. striatula, Couth. Pelagic. Hab. Casco Bay. Found
in fishes' stomachs. Very rare.
the Shells of Maine. 341
Genus Pleurotoma. Lam.
P. decussata, Couth. Pelagic. Rare in Casco Bay. Found
in fishes' stomachs.
P. bicarinata, Couth. Found with the preceding. Very rare.
P. violacea, Adams and Migh. Professor Adams first found
this species among loose sand and fragments of other shells,
on the shore, east of Mount Joy, Portland harbor. It is, how-
ever, pelagic, never being found in a fresh state but in the
stomachs of fishes. Rare.
Genus Cancellaria. Lam.
C. couthoyi, Jay. Pelagic. Hab. Casco Bay. Frequently
taken from haddocks' stomachs caught in deep water.
Genus Fasciolaria. Lam.
F. Ugata, Migh. Pelagic. Hab. Gulf of St. Lawrence.
About a dozen specimens were taken from the stomach of a
sand-dab by a fisherman in 184L This is the only species of
the genus that has been detected north of New York.
Genus Fusus. Lam.
All the species of this genus, found here, excepting P.
islandicus and P. decemcostatus, are pelagic, and are obtained
only from the stomachs of fishes.
P. decemcostatus, Say. Found rather plentifully at Passama-
quoddy, during spring tides, burrowing in the mud near low-
water mark. I have recently received good specimens from
the island of Mount Desert. Dead specimens are occasionally
found on the shores of Casco Bay, and I have frequently
found very young ones in fishes' stomachs. It occurs fossil at
Topsham.
P. islandicus, Penn. Gmel. Found at Passamaquoddy, in
company with the preceding. It is also taken from cod-fishes'
stomachs caught in the Gulf of St. Lawrence. I am not
aware that it is anywhere abundant.
P. pygmccus, Gould. Having been familiar with this shell
342 . MigheW Catalogue of
for several years, and having found thousands of specimens, I
cannot entertain the shghtest doubt that it is distinct from jP.
islandicus. It is uniformly much smaller than that species,
rarely exceeding an inch in length ; the epidermis is uniformly
of a light, horn color; in F. islandicus it is uniformly of a
reddish brown, even in young specimens, not larger than this ;
the transverse lines in this species are more numerous, and the
ultimate and penultimate whorls are proportionally smaller,
consequently it is more subulate.
jP. tornatus, Gould. Hab. Grand Banks. Taken from
the stomachs of cod-fishes. It occurs, fossil, in a post-tertiary
formation at Peak's Island, Casco Bay. Very rare.
F. scalar if oj'mis, Gould. I have found several in fishes'
stomachs taken in very deep water, in Casco Bay. It also
occurs in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, but is rare everywhere.
jP. hamffias, Fiem. This elegant little shell is often found
in Casco Bay, — fresh specimens, however, are very rare.
F. rufus, Mont. Gould. (F.. pleuroto?narius, Couth.) This
species is occasionally found, but it is scarce.
F. harpularius, Couth. Rare.
F. tuiTiculus, Mont. Not unfrequently obtained from deep
water in Casco Bay. I once detected it with the dredge in
Portland harbor. Capt. Walden has dredged it near the Fox
Islands.
jP. cancellatus, iMigh. Hab. Casco Bay, in very deep water.
1 have never found more than four or five specimens.
Genus Rostellaria. Lam.
R. occidentalis, Beck. Pelagic. This curious species oc-
curs in Casco Bay, but I have never found perfect specimens. I
once took twenty specimens, mostly mature, from the stomach
of a cai-fish, (A)iai'rhichas lupus, L.) but so comminuted as to
be of little or no value. I am indebted to the fishermen for
several fine specimens taken in the Gulf of St. Lawrence.
Genus Trichotropis. Brod. and Sowb.
T. horealis, Sowb. (T. costeUaius, Couth.) Pelagic. Some
iJie Shells of Maine. 343
years, I have found this shell considerably plentiful in the
stomachs of haddock taken in Casco Bay, but during the last
two years it has been rarely seen.
Genus Purpura. Lam.
P. lapillus, Lin. Littoral. Lihabits the whole coast of
Maine, in vast numbers. I have placed in my cabinet, at
least eight varieties of this species, all inhabitants of Maine.
The only variety that occurs at Eastport, is of a chocolate
color, — externally and internally. European specimens are
a little more ponderous than our shells, in other respects they
are the same.
Genus Buccinum. Lin.
B. undatum, Lin. Littoral, — occasionally found, during
ordinary tides, considerably above low-w'ater mark, in great
numbers. The larsrest and most beautiful I ever saw, I found
at Clapboard Island, in Casco Bay. They very soon disap-
peared, and have not been noticed since. Our shell differs in
no respect from European specimens. A sailor gave me a
specimen which he says he picked up on the coast of Chili ;
it accords perfectly with ours.
B, trii'ittatum, Say. Found in considerable numbers in
fishes' stomachs, and by dredging in Portland harbor. I once
found it alive, in the mud, during a spring tide, at low-water
mark, at Clapboard Island.
B. ohsohtam, Say. Littoral. Abundant on muddy flats in
all our quiet bays, especially near the mouths of rivers.
B. rosacewn, Gould. Pelagic. Found sparingly, in had-
docks' stomachs in Casco Bay.
B. ciliatuni, Oth. Fab. Pelagic. Hab. Gulf of St. Law-
rence and Grand Banks. Very rare.
B, donovani, Gray. Pelagic. Obtained from fishes' stom-
achs, accompanying the preceding. Also rare.
B. pUcosum, Menke. A few specimens of this species have
been found in Back Cove, near this city ; they accord per-
fectly with Massachusetts specimens.
344 Mighels' Catalogue of
Genus Columbella. Lam.
C avara, Say. I found a single specimen of this species
in a haddock's stomach taken in Casco Bay.
Genus Terebra. Lam.
T. ( Cei'ithium,) cUsIocata, Say. (T. jjetitii, Keiner.)
Through Dr. Ray 1 have received a specimen of this shell. He
found it with several more, on the shores of Passamaquoddy
Bay, near Eastport. He informs me he has found it at several
places in that vicinity, and has no doubt that it inhabits that
locality.
It thus appears that there are seventy-nine genera, repre-
sented by two hundred and twenty-five species, to which might
be added with propriety, all the northern species included
in Dr. Gould's Report, (Invert. Mass.) with twenty-five or
thirty fossil species noticed by Dr. Jackson in his 2d Annual
Report on tlie Geology of Maine, and six or eight others
which have come into my possession through fishermen, who
found them on some of the eastern islands.
The occurrence of several species on this coast, that inhabit
the south shore of Cape Cod, and not Massachusetts Bay, is
a fact worthy of notice. How is this to be explained ? Does
the Gulf Stream have anything to do with it ? Is there a cur-
rent flowing around that cape, in an easterly direction, con-
nected with or independent of the Gulf Stream ? and if so,
where does it terminate? Would it not, more probably, ter-
minate on the coast of Maine than on the coast of Massachu-
setts ? If such a current does exist, either constantly or
periodically, would it not be a satisfactory solution of the
problem ? I have but little doubt of the existence of such a
current, and that it acquires a mighty energy during the preva-
lence of southerly winds. The effect of it in transplanting
marine productions will readily occur to every mind. It is
well known among naturalists that several species of tropical
shells occur on the coast of Great Britain and Ireland, whither
Mighels'' Descriptions of Six Species of Shells. 345
they have, probably, been transported by the Gulf Stream. If
this is true, although it does not prove, it certainly adds some
strength to the supposition, that the species of shells above
alluded to have been transported across Massachusetts Bay by
a current not hitherto observed, from some region south of
Cape Cod.
I would by no means be understood as recording this as
my settled opinion, I merely throw out these hints in the hope
of eliciting the opinions of others.
Since writing the above I have had an interview with Capt.
Walden, who confirms my conjecture. He says there are two
periodical currents, — one sets eastwardly around Cape Cod,
and extends into the Bay of Fundy ; it frequently flows at the
rate of two miles an hour, and continues for several weeks in
succession. The westerly current is also periodical, and con-
tinues to flow during longer periods than the easterly one. It
commences where the other ends, in the Bay of Fundy, and
he thinks it generally becomes exhausted on the westerly part
of the coast of JMaine, though sometimes he has felt its in-
fluence as far south and west as Cape Ann.
Art. XXVIL— descriptions OP SIX SPECIES OF SHELLS RE-
GARDED AS NEW. By J. W. Mighels, M. D., Portland, Maine. Com-
municated March, 1343.
ASTARTE PORTLANDICA.
A. testa parva, solida, per-inequilaterali ; umbonibus elevatis, approxima-
tis, recurvis ; lunula angustata ; intus lividd ; marginibus simplicibus.
Plate XVI. Fig 2.
Shell small, solid, rather compressed, very inequilateral,
upper part of the anterior margin moderately curved, ante-
rior, basal and posterior margins regularly rounded ; beaks
39
346 Migliels' Descriptions of
elevated, approximate, pointed and eroded ; kmule narrow,
lanceolate, and rather superficial ; external surface slightly
undulating, occasioned by the incremental strise, which under
a magnifier appear to be interrupted and rather coarse ; the
epidermis is of a dark, yellowish brown color ; the interior is
smooth, of a dark brown, inclining to a chocolate color; the
hinge margin is tiiin, the posterior side of the left valve is
sharp, which fits into a slight groove in the opposite valve, a
short distance behind the beak ; there is one cardinal tooth
in the right valve which is received into a subtriangular
space between two unequal teeth in the left valve ; muscu-
lar impressions superficial, reniform ; margins simple.
Length |, height ^^g, breadth \ inch.
Habitat. Casco Bay.
Remarks. I have obtained only a single specimen of this
species ; this I found in the stomach of a haddock, in 1842. It
is readily distinguished from all the other species of the genus
by its extraordinary obliquity, and by the livid color of the
interior.
Bulla pertenuis.
B. testA minutci, cylindracea, albida, liyalinti ; anfiactibus quatuor j spirS.
elevatd ; labro supernc recto, infrcl rotundato ; apertura superne augustata,
infra lat^i.
Plate XVI. Fig. 3.
Shell very small, cylindrical, of a dingy white color, very
thin and fragile ; whorls four, rounded, all lying in the snme
plane; suture distinct, as seen under the microscope; spire
elevated ; labrum nearly straight at the posterior part, rounded
anteriorly, returning into the shell it forms a delicate, slightly
elevated lamina, which, under the microscope, is seen to oc-
cupy nearly the whole length of the columellar region ; aper-
ture very narrow posteriorly, broad and rounded anteriorly.
Length ^^g inches, breadth j^g inches.
Habitat. Casco Bay.
Remarks. When greatly magnified this shell resembles
B. Gouldii, Couth, but besides being much smaller, it is pro-
six Sjjecies of Shells. 347
portionally longer, — it is also entirely destitute of the re-
volving lines, which are seen on that shell. It is the smallest
species of the genus that has hitherto been found on the
American coast. I first detected it in sifting sand and mud
taken from the stomachs of haddock, in the spring of 1842.
It is scarce and difficult to obtain.
Ll.MNEA AMPLA.
L. testa amplci, subovatA ; anfractibus quinciue, convexis, superne genic-
ulatis; sutura vakle irapressa ; spira brevi ; apertura. lata; uinbilico pro-
fundo ; columella valdc plicata.
Plate XVI. Fig. I. a. b. c.
Shell large, much inflated, suboval, rather thin, composed
of five convex whorls, prominently shouldered at the upper
part ; epidermis of an obscure, olivaceous green color ; lines
of accretion very fine and compact ; transverse lines obscure,
appearing seiriform under a magnifier, giving the surface the
appearance of very delicate lace work ; suture deep, and in
one specimen, (fig. c,) subcanaliculate ; spire short and point-
ed when present ; aperture oblong, very wide at the posterior
part, but narrowing rapidly anteriorly, and occupying rather
more than two thirds the length of the shell ; labrum thin and
somewhat reflected ; labium broadly reflected, forming and
partially covering an open and very deep umbilicus ; columel-
lar fold very prominent ; within, it is of a light yellowish fawn
color, with an obscure purplish zone, one line in breadth, and
about two lines within the aperture.
Length 1.3 inches, breadth 1 inch, height .8 inches.
Divergence of the spire very variable.
Habitat. Second Eagle Lake, Maine, N. lat. 47^.
Remarks. This extraordinary and beautiful species was dis-
covered by Mr. Alexander W. Longfellow, civil engineer, while
engaged with other gentlemen of the scientific corps, in the
exploration and survey of the north-eastern boundary, in the
summer of 1842. He informs me they were very abundant
on the shore of the lake, but he had no means of preserving
39*
348 . Mighels' Descriptions of
any more than four specimens, all of which are in my collec-
tion. No two of the specimens are exactly alike ; but not-
withstanding this, and the remarkable difference between
those represented in the plate, 1 doubt not they are specifically
the same.
It is allied to L, decoUaia, Nob. but it is readily distinguish-
ed from that shell by its amplitude, by a proportionately
larger penultimate whorl, by the reflected labrum, by a much
broader labium, and by the open umbilicus, which is always
entirely closed in L. decollata.
I regard that represented by fig. a, as the prevailing type
of the species. Fig. 5 is a little shorter, and rather more
tumid ; fig. c, represents a distorted specimen.
Phasianella sulcosa.
P. testA minuta, ovato-conica, Isevi; anfractibus quatuor, subconvexis,
transversim sulcatis ; sutura impressa ; apertura ovato-oblonga, intus trans-
versim fasciata.
Plate XVI. Fig. 4.
Shell very small, ovate-conical, smooth and white ; whorls
four, slightly convex, with six or seven transverse grooves on
the body whorl, and three on each of the two next above ;
spire smooth and pointed ; aperture ovate-oblong, with three,
slightly apparent transverse bands within, as seen under a
strong magnifying power.
Length ^l inch, breadth about gg inch.
Habitat. Casco Bay.
Remarks. Examined with the unassisted eye, this shell
would be likely to be mistaken for some species of Cingula,
but its true character is revealed with even a moderate mag-
nifying power, — the lip being inconiinuous posteriorly. I
have never discovered but one specimen of this curious little
shell ; this I found in the stomach of a haddock, in company
with several other minute species of shells, in the summer of
1842. I presume it is the only representative of the genus
that has been hitherto discovered on our Atlantic coast.
Siv Species of Shells. 349
Margarita minutissima.
j\r. testa minutissimii, globoso-subovatu ; anfractibus tribus, convexis,
longitudinaliter sulcatis ; spird brevi, obtusii ; sutum valclc impressa ; aper-
tuid orbiculari ; umbilico magno et profundo.
Plate XVI. Fig 5.
Shell very minute, subdiscoidal, globular-ovate, of a dull
ash-color ; whorls three, convex, with distinct longitudinal,
approximate sulci, running obliquely, and disappearing as they
approach the umbilical region ; spire very low and obtuse at
the apex ; suture deep ; aperture circular ; lip sharp and
nearly continuous posteriorly : umbilicus large and profound.
Length about -}^-, inch, breadth about equal to the length.
Habitat. Casco Bay.
Remarks. I have never found but a single specimen of
this shell, which I took from the stomach of a haddock. It is
not very nearly allied to any of the other species found on
the coast. Under a magnifier, it somewhat resembles M. vari-
cosa, Nob. in the ultimate whorl. It is, however, readily dis-
tinguished by its very depressed and obtuse spire.
Delphinula? coarctata.
D. testa parva, subdiscoidea, imperforata ; anfractibus tribus, convexis, lon-
gitudinaliter minutissimc striatis ; ultimo anfractu maximo ; sutura cana-
liculata ; apertura intcgcrrima, circulari, intus flaviduJa.
Plate XVI. Fig. 6.
Shell small, subdiscoidal, much depressed, imperforate ;
whorls three, convex, minutely striated longitudinally ; last
whorl very large, composing a large proportion of the entire
shell ; spire much depressed and obtuse ; suture very deep,
being canaliculate above the body whorl ; aperture uninter-
rupted, circular, of a wax color within ; epidermis yellowish.
Length I inch, breadth I inch.
Habitat. Casco Bay.
Remarks. I have hesitated much in characterizing this
shell. In examining the contents of fishes' stomachs, I have
frequently found specimens of it, but regarding them as mere
accidental varieties of some of our species of Litton'na, I
350 Monograph of the Species of
have heretofore thrown them away as worthless. But, on
careful examination and comparison, 1 am persuaded it is dis-
tinct from Littorina. The entire margin, and perfectly circu-
lar aperture bring it nearer to Delphinula, if, indeed, it is not
a species of that genus. Although I have not had an oppor-
tunity to examine the animal inhabitant, nor even the opercle,
I am constrained to separate it from Littorina, and place it
under Delphinula, with a doubt, for the present.
Art. XX VI IL — monograph OF THE SPECIES OF PUPA FOUND IN
THE UNITED STATES : With Figures. By Augustus A. Gould, M. D.
(Continued from Vol. III. p. 404.)
In the preceding part of this paper I remarked, that there
were two or three described species of the genus Pupa, which
I had not then seen, or had failed to identify them with their
descriptions. During the long interval which has since
elapsed, through the kindness of my friends I have succeeded
in obtaining all of them. These I shall now proceed to de-
scribe, and also to communicate such facts respecting the spe-
cies previously noticed, as a more extended observation has
disclosed.
PUPA OVATA.
Plate XVI. figs. 7, 8.
P. ovata, umbilicata, castanea ; anfractibus quinque, convexis ; aperlura subcor-
data, dentibus 5 ad 9 lamellosis armat^, quorum 1-3 poslice, duo ad columellam,
2-5 ad labium inflexum adnatis.
" Shell dextral, subovate, brown ; apex obtuse ; whorls five,
glabrous ; suture not very deeply impressed ; body whorl in-
dented near and upon the labrum ; aperture semioval ; labium
five toothed, of which three are situate on the transverse por-
tion of the lip, parallel to each other, equidistant, the superior
and inferior ones being small, the latter sometimes obsolete,
the intermediate one lamelliform, prominent, and the two
other ones situate on tiie columella, approximate, extending
Pupa fo7ind in the United States. 351
at right angles to the three preceding ones, the superior (infe-
rior ?) one obhque and smaller ; labium reflected but not flat-
tened, bidentate, teeth lamellilbrm, prominent; umbilicus
distinct.
Length less than j'^ inch, breadth nearly ^^^ inch.
The smallest teeth of the labium are sometimes obsolete."
(Say, Jouni. Acad. Nat. Sc. II. 375.) See also Adams, Cat-
alogue of Mollusca, in Thompson^ s Hist, of Vermont, and Sil-
liman's Journ. XL. p. 27 L
An opportunity having been afforded for a careful examina-
tion of the authentic specimens of this species placed in the
Cabinet of the Academy of Natural Sciences at Philadelphia
by Mr. Say, and also of his Pupa modesia, the latter proves to
be merely a specimen of P. ovata, with the lip somewhat
fractured, by which the aperture has received a somewhat
modified form (fig. 8) ; and this circumstance has been the
source of no little embarrassment. Mr. Say's description is
as follows :
P. modesta. " Shell suboval, minutely wrinkled ; apex
obtuse ; whorls six ; umbilicus distinct ; aperture obliquely
subovate ; labrum with a prominent, compressed, semioval
tooth, equidistant from the extremities of the labrum, and a
somewhat conic one rather below the middle of the columella ;
labrum not inflected, joining the preceding whorl at its upper
extremity with a curve, bidentate, lower tooth placed opposite
to that of the middle of the labium, the other smaller and
placed a little above. Length a inch." (Say, Long's Se-
cond Expedition, n. 260, pi. L5, fig. 5.) See also Gould's
Inverteb. of Massachusetts, 188, fig. 119.
This species is constant in its external characters, but is
somewhat variable in its aperture. It is seldom that three
teeth are found on the transverse lip, the tooth on the left be-
ing almost always, and that on the right being frequently
wanting. Somctiincs there is a minute tooth at the base of
the aperture, and sometimes a third tooth on the posterior
part of the outer lip. It is more ventricose than any other
American species, and of a darker color. It is shining, but
distinctly marked with longitudinal wrinkles. The inflection
352 Monograph of the Species of
of the outer lip is such as to render the aperture heart-shaped,
and the flexure extends to a considerable distance round
towards the back of the shell. Its true dimensions are,
length /y inch, breadth {^ inch.
It lives in damp places, around the borders of ponds, or in
rich, moist fields under fragments of board, sticks, &c. Mr.
Say found his ovata in Pennsylvania and his modesia in the
Northwest Territory. It is common about Boston, and I have
received it from near Portsmouth, N. H., from Troy, N. Y.,
from Worcester County, Md., and from Jacksonsborough,
S. C. ; and Professor Adams found it near Middlebury, Vt.,
and Dr. J. W. Mighels near Pordand, Me.
The animal is of a dark claret color above, lighter beneath ;
tentacles two, remarkably clavate or pestle-shaped ; the front
of the foot is trilobate, the central lobe being very small, and
there is a constriction behind the two lateral ones.
PUPA GOULDII.
PI. XVI. Fig. 9.
"Testa minuti, ovato- cylindric^, sub-castanca ; anfractibus pluribusqu;im qua-
tuor ; apice obtuso ; apertura subcordata, bilobata, dentibus quinque armata ; labro
subreflexo."
^' Animal with two tentacles only, black above ; foot gray,
short posteriorly. Shell light chestnut, cylindrical ovate ;
whorls between four and five, rather ventricose, the last occu-
pying nearly half the length of the axis ; apex obtuse ; aper-
ture lateral, composed of two unequal curves, meeting in the
centre of the outer lip, with five prominent white teeth, viz. :
one upon the transverse margin, two upon the umbilical mar-
gin, and two upon the labial margin ; lip thickened, not re-
flected ; umbilicus a little open." (Binney, in Proceedings
of the Boston Sac. Nat. History, p. 105, March 15, 1843.)
This very distinct species is unusually constant in its char-
acters. Its shape may be more properly called elliptical. In
size it is intermediate between P. ovata and P. milium, ap-
proaching more nearly to the latter in form and color. In
adult specimens I have never found any variation in the num-
Pupa found in the United States. 353
ber or situation of the teeth. At a little distance back of the
outer lip, and answering to the two teeth within, are seen two
indentations, showing that the parts witliin are folds rather
than teeth ; and this is very plainly seen to be the case in
young specimens. Its length is about {^ inch, breadth g^.. inch.
It was first sent to me by Dr. W. Newcomb, of Troy, N. Y.,
and subsequently by Prof. E. Foreman, from Baltimore and
Worcester County, Md. Since then I have found it, in August,
upon sticks and about the roots of trees in the woods in Cam-
bridge and Ptoxbury. It seems to be abundant.
PUPA PE^'TODON.
Plate XVT. fig. 10. 11.
P. ovato-oblonga, albida, umbilicata ; anfractibus quinque, convexis, apice subacu-
ta; apertura oblique semiovata, dentibus 5-3 mstructa, quorum 1-2 postice, 2 ad col-
umellam, 2-5 ad lab rum positis ; labro expanse .
" Shell dextral, subovate, whitish horn-color ; apex obtuse ;
whorls five, glabrous, convex ; suture not very deeply im-
pressed ; aperture semioval ; labrum two-toothed, of which a
single very prominent one is on the middle of the transverse
labium, and the other remote, much smaller, and placed on
the basal angle of the columella ; labrum regularly arcuated,
tridentate, tooth nearest the base very small and placed near
the smaller tooth of the columella ; the two others larger, sub-
equal ; umbilicus distinct. Length less than ,\^ inch.
Lower tooth of the labrum sometimes obsolete.
Animal, foot white, head and neck, as far as the mantle,
black." (Say, Journ. Acad. ^at. Sc. II. 376.)
This is the most variable of all our species. While there
is no doubt as to this being the shell intended by Mr. Say as
his pcniodon, it is unfortunate that he should have selected so
inappropriate a name, inasmuch as the shell is never found
with five teeth except in an immature state, when the number
is even reduced to four. It is nevertheless true that five of
the teeth are constant, viz. : one upon the transverse lip, two
on the columella and two on the outer lip. Then there is
354 Monogra-pli of the Species of
sometimes an additional small one on the transverse lip, to the
left of the constant one ; and the teeth on the outer lip vary
in many ways, as may be best exhibited by the following ta-
ble of varieties which I have observed, intended to represent
the teeth in succession as they occur, beginning at the outer
posterior angle and going round to the left.
1
0
1
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
c
1
0
1
1
1
0
3
0
0
1
0
1
1
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
By this table it appears that there may be as many as even
eleven teeth, though I have never seen more than eight on
one individual. Of the two teeth which are shown by this
table to be constant on the outer lip, the largest is situated
nearly opposite the tooth on the transverse lip, and the other
less than half the distance between it and the posterior angle.
Such remarkable deviations have led to the proposal of two
new species which may with propriety be noticed, and may be
considered as the two extremes of the varieties, viz. :
P. Tappanidna, Adams, a name adopted by him from the
manuscripts of the late Dr. Ward of Roscoe, Ohio, and de-
scribed in a supplementary sheet to the 40th volume of Silli-
man's Journal, and afterwards in Thompson's History of Ver-
mont. The finest examples of the species come under this
variety. They are such as occur in Ohio, of a very light
color, quite translucent, without epidermis, and with the lip
distinct and white. It is ^^^ inch in length, and about half as
broad, fig. 10.
P. carvidens, Gould, (Inverteh. of Massachusetts, 189, fig.
120) is about one seventh smaller, has a very thin, greenish
epidermis, and generally eight teeth, and the large one on the
transverse lip decidedly curved to the left, (fig. 11.) Such are
specimens usually found in Massachusetts ; and though in
size, exterior, and armature they are so diflfercnt from the
Pupa found in the United States. 355
Ohio specimens, yet as I have seen so many intervening
varieties, 1 tliink this form should be abandoned as a species.
Notwithstanding all these discrepancies, there is a certain
aspect about the shell which enables one to distinguish it
without much difficulty. Its ovate form, its very small aper-
ture, with the transverse portion so oblique that the inner lip
is very short in proportion to the outer one, will serve to de-
termine the species with a very small magnifying power.
Mr. Say found his specimens in Pennsylvania ; it is not in-
frequent in the vicinity of Boston, under fallen leaves in shady
woods ; Professor Adams found it near Middlebury, Vt. ; Dr.
Newcomb found it near Troy, N. Y. ; it is one of the most
common species in Ohio, and has been sent me by Dr. Fore-
man from near Baltimore, and from Jacksonborough, S. C.
Thus, with the exception of P. contracta it has been observed
over a wider region than any other species.
PUPA PvUPICOLA.
Plate XVI. fig. 13.
P. ovato-conica, glabra, albida, umbilicata ; apice subacuta ; anfractibus sex con-
vexis : apertura obliqua, semi-el liplica, dentibus quinque lamellosis armata, quorum
unus postice, duo ad columellam, duo ad labium expansum dispositi.
" Shell dextral, attenuated to an acute apex, white ; suture
deeply impressed ; labrum bidentate, superior tooth lamellar,
emarginate in the middle, and at the anterior tip uniting with
the superior termination of the labrum ; inferior tooth placed
on the columella, and extending nearly at a right angle with
the preceding ; labrum tridentate, teeth placed somewhat
alternatelv with those of the labium ; inferior tooth situated at
the base and immediately beneath the inferior tooth of the la-
bium. Length /- inch."
About the size of P. corticaria, and considerably resembles
that species, but is sufficiently distinguished by the circum-
stance of its gradually decreasing in diameter from the body
whorl to its tip, and in the character of the mouth it is widely
distinct. (Say, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sc. II. 163.)
356 Monograph of the Species of
Found by Mr. Say in Florida, and sent to me by Dr. Ra-
venel from Charleston, S. C, and by Dr. Foreman from Jack-
sonborough and Manchester, S. C, and from Savannah and
Whitmarsh's Island, Georgia. It seems to be a southern
species ; and although I have very often received shells from
Ohio under this name, yet no one of them has actually proved
to be this species.
I have met with little or no variety in this species, and the
above description can scarcely be amended, except to say that
the teeth are compressed, and protracted for a considerable
distance within the aperture. The place of the two teeth or
folds on the outer lip is marked externally by two prolonged
indentations. The distinctive marks between this species and
P. corticaria are clearly given ; but it has a much closer re-
semblance, in its armature especially, to P. procera. It is,
however, distinguished by its less cylindrical form, its lighter
color, its smoother surface, its white instead of brown lip ; the
tooth on the transverse lip is less twisted, and that which is at
the base is not so remote or so transverse in position. Its
spire is also at least half a whorl shorter.
PUPA SERVILIS.
Plate XVI. fig. 14.
Testa ovato-elongata, glabra, rufescens, umbilicata ; anfractibus quinque convexis ;
apertura semi-elliptica, dentibus quinque armata, quorum unus contortus postice,
unus ad basin, duo ad labium affixi ; labro reflexo.
Shell elongated ; tapering to a somewhat acute apex, of a
pale chestnut or horn color ; whorls five and sometimes some-
what more, very delicately wrinkled ; suture well defined.
Aperture semi-oval, nearly in the axis of the shell, the trans-
verse portion slightly oblique, and the two extremities of the
lip very nearly meeting behind. Revolving under the middle
of the transverse lip is a contorted, lamellar tooth which arises
near the junction of the outer lip ; on the middle of the col-
umella is a large conical tooth ; at the base is a small tooth,
then a third large tooth, placed so as to form a regular tripod
Pupa found in the United States. 357
with the other two, and above this is a fifth inconspicuous
tooth. Lip sHghtly everted, not flattened, sometimes a Uttle
inflected at the right, umbilicus small. Length, -^^ breadth rj^
inch.
At first sight this species would be referred either to P. ru-
picola or P. jirocera. But a closer examination shows that
while it has the pale brown lip of the latter, it is a shorter and
much more ventricose shell ; and while the number and ar-
rangement of the teeth are as in rupicola, the latter has a
much more slender form, the aperture is more oblique and less
elongated, the apex is obtuse, and the lip is white.
Notwithstanding the distinctions mentioned above, perhaps
most observers, on ordinary inspection, would maintain that
these three were merely local varieties of the same species. I
will add, therefore, that by means of an excellent microscope,
to which a camera lucida is attached, I have made accurate
figures three inches in length, which render the differences in
form unequivocal.
Found at Santa Cruz by Dr. R. E. Griffiths, and near Ma-
tanzas by John Bartlett, Esq.
I have inserted this species here, although it cannot strictly
be considered as belonging to the United States, because of
its proximity to the States, and more especially because it
helps to illustrate two of our species.
PUPA FALLAX.
Plate XVI. fig. 15.
P. turrita, glabra, pallide castanea, umbilicata ; anfractibus sex convexis ; apertura
obliqua, subrolundalaj edenlula ; labro albo, valdc reflexo, slriato.
" Cydostoma margiiutta. Shell turreted, pale horn color
or dusky, obsoletely wrinkled across ; suture rather deeply
impressed ; volutions six ; aperture suboval, truncate trans-
versely above by the penultimate whorl, nearly one third the
length of the shell ; labium nearly transverse, color of the ex-
terior part of the shell : labrum equally and widely reflected,
thick, white ; umbilicus distinct. Length J inch." (Say,
Journ. Acad. i^at. Sc. 11. 172.)
35 S Monograph of the Species of
This shell is clearly not a Cyclostoma, and on that account,
as Mr. Say suggests, the specific name must be changed. As
the shell afterwards described by him under the name of Puya
fallax {Journ. Acad. Nat. Sc. V. 121.) is only a finely devel-
oped shell of this species, that name may well be retained for
the species. It was therefore adopted in the Report on the
Invertebrata of JMassachusetts, p. 192, fig. 123. Professor
Adams also applied to it the specific term albilahris, in Silli-
man's Journal, XL. 271, and in his Catalogue of the MoUusca
of Vermont in Thompson's History, a name suggested by the
late Dr. Ward. Some doubt still remains as to whether it be-
longs to the genus Pupa, or to Bulimus, as the animal has not
been described.
This shell is so well known as to require no more particular
illustration. The lip, however, is not often equally reflected,
but is much narrowed near the junction of the outer portion
with the body whorl. There are also two or three deeply cut
lines running parallel and near to its margin.
Mr. Say found his specimens in tlie North-West Territory,
and it is not uncommon in Massachusetts, Vermont, New
York, Maryland and South Carolina.
Its foreign analogue is P. umhilicdta, Drap.
Having recently had an opportunity, by means of one of
Chevalier's large microscopes, of tracing off greatly enlarged
figures of these minute shells, with great accuracy, I will now
review the species described in the former part of this paper,
and notice those points which were inaccurately stated, or
which need further illustration, and add such further informa-
tion as I may have since obtained respecting them.
P. coRTicARiA. The single tooth which Mr. Say describes
as being on the pillar lip, should read on the transverse lip, to
correspond with his subsequent descriptions of species. In
the figure (Vol. III. pi. 3, fig. 19,) the body whorl is repre-
sented too long. I have received it from Worcester county,
Maryland.
P. ExiGUA. In the figure of tliis shell (Vol. III. pi. 3, fig.
20,) the body whorl is represented proportionally too large.
Pupa found in the United States. 359
Its length is .08 inch. The only additional locality from
which I have received it is Troy, N. Y.
The animal is colorless, and has only two tentaculae devel-
oped, which are stout, hyaline, about one third as long as the
foot. See liej). on the Invertehrata of Mass., 191, fig. 122.
P. coNTRACTA. Thc apcrturc, in Vol. III. fig. 22, should
be placed much fartiier to the right. It is probably common
in all the States, as I have received specimens from the Island
of Cuba. Found about rotten stumps or under stones in
moist pastures. See Invertehrata of Mass. 186, fig. 117, and
Ada3is, in Thompson^ Hist, of Vermont.
P. MILIUM. The teeth on the outer lip are more properly
folds, as indicated by the two elongated indentations on the
exterior of the shell corresponding to them. I have a speci-
men from Mr. Anthony which he received from Louisiana.
See Gould, Invertehrata of Mass. 187, fig. 118. Adams, in
Silliman's Journ. Vol. XL. 270, and Thompson's Hist, of Ver-
mont.
P. PROCERA. Both the description and figure of this species
are so incorrect that I reproduce an accurate figure, (fig. 12.)
Its peculiar characters have been noticed under P. rupicola. It
has not yet been sent me from any other locality than the
vicinity of Baltimore.
On the cover of the Society's Journal, Vol. IV. No. 1, I
indicated a species by the name of P. carinata which I sup-
posed to be new. But the examination of another specimen
has satisfied me that it was merely an immature or a fractured
specimen of P. procera.
P. ARMiFERA. Profcssor Adams has found this species
plentifully at Crown Point, and some other places near Lake
Champlain. I have also received it from Maryland. See
also Adams, Catalogue of j)[oUusca in Thompson's Hist, of
Vermont.
P. SIMPLEX. Very few of these shells have as yet been
found, and none, that I know of, in any other except the
original locality. They are enough, however, to establish the
validity of the species.
360 Desci'iptlons of two Undescrihed Species of
P. BADiA has been found by Dr. Newcomb near Troy, N. Y.
See also Adams, Catalogue of Mollusca in Thompson^ s Hist.
of Vermont,
Thus there are at present known, in the United States,
thirteen species of this genus. They are remarkable, as com-
pared with those found in other countries, for their minute-
ness ; the two largest species, armifera and hadia, scarcely ex-
ceeding in size the smallest of the European species. It is
also singular that no species of the allied genus Clausilia, so
abundant in Europe and Asia, should have been found, as
yet, on the North American continent ; and indeed I am not
aware that any shell possessing a true clausium has been found
in any part of America.
Art. XXIX.— descriptions OF TWO UNDESCRIBED SPECIES OF
NORTH AMERICAN HELICES. By Amos Einney.
HELIX TUDICULATA.
Plate XX.
H. testa orbiculato-convexa, imperforata, rufo-olivacea, fascia unicii castanea
cincta, et impressionibus squamatis undique signata ; apertura transversa ; labro al-
bicloj sub-reflexo ; basi convexa.
Description.
Animal. Not observed.
Shell. Orbiculate-convex ; epidermis olivaceous ; spire a
depressed cone ; whorls between five and six, slightly convex ;
body-whorl voluminous, expanding somewhat towards the
aperture ; aperture transverse, rather circular ; lip whitish,
slightly reflected ; umbilicus covered by a testaceous callus
uniting with the reflected lip ; base convex ; a well defined,
rather wide, dark chestnut band, margined with a lighter color
above and below, revolves near the centre of the body whorl,
and is more or less visible above the suture on the two whorls
preceding the last ; surface of the outer whorl covered with
North American Helices. 361
somewhat regular impressions or indentations with ridges be-
tween, causing it to look as if covered with scales ; where
these are not apparent it is marked with oblique wrinkles.
Transverse diameter one inch and a quarter.
Geographical Distribution. The only specimen I have
seen, belonging to the cabinet of Andrew Belknap, Esq., was
taken near St. Diego, California.
Remarks. This beautiful and well defined species is unlike
any other which I have noticed ; and no description has been
met with, which corresponds with it. It resembles in its gen-
eral appearance. Helix Dupetitthouarsi of Deshayes, (Guerin.
Mag. de Zool. 1841, pi. 30,) but it is destitute of an umbilical
opening which in that species is large. The singular indenta-
tions of the surface resemble very exactly the impressions of
the hammer on the interior of silver vessels. The specific
name is derived from the resemblance.
HELIX. DEMISSA.
Plate XVI. Fig. 16.
H. testa depresso-convexa, peforata, luteolo-cornea, nitens ; anfractibus sex, mi-
nute striatis ; apatura transversa ; labro simplici, acuto ; basi glabra ; umbilico
parvo.
Description.
Animal. Not noticed.
Shell. Depressed-convex ; epidermis yellowish horn color,
shining ; whorls six, with minute lines of growth ; spire ob-
tuse ; suture impressed ; body whorl expanding very little to-
wards the aperture ; aperture transverse, not large, a white
testaceous deposit within ; lip thin, acute ; base rather flat,
smooth ; umbilicus very small, umbilical region a little im-
pressed.
Greatest transverse diameter rather more than three eighths
of an inch.
Geographical Distribution. The only specimens which I
have yet seen were procured in the western part of Pennsyl-
vania.
Remarks. This is a delicate and very pretty species, and
40
362 Savage and Wyman
is distinct from everything unless it be Helix Jigera. The
character of the surface and skin is the same in both, and the
base is nearly the same. I have seen very depressed specimens
of Helix ligera, but none approaching this. It may, however,
be subject to still further reductions in the height of the spire,
until it reaches the depression of the present shell. If it
should be the same, it will exhibit very extraordinary variation
in this respect, from a high conical to a planulate form. It re-
sembles Helix suppressa externally in everything except size.
Art. XXX. — observations ON THE EXTERNAL CHARACTERS
AND HABITS OF THE TROGLODYTES NIGER, Geoff. By Thomas
S. Savage, M. D., Corresponding Member of the Boston Society of
Natural History — AND ON ITS ORGANIZATION, by Jeffries VV^y-
MAN, M. D.
The specimens belonging to the Chimpanzee, Black Ourang,
or Simia troglodytes of naturalists, from which the following
descriptions are in part drawn, were presented to the Boston
Society of Natural History by Thomas S. Savage, M. D., a
missionary stationed at Cape Palmas, West Africa. To the
enlightened zeal and liberality of Dr. Savage the society is
also indebted for numerous other rare and valuable zoological
specimens, especially of insects, from the same region. The
specimens belonging to the Chimpanzee, consist of the skeleton
nearly entire, the head covered with the integuments, the or-
gans of respiration, and of generation of the male and female,
and the anterior and posterior hands, all from adults ; also, an
entire specimen of a young male subject. Dr. Savage has
transmitted notes of his own observations relative to the habits
and external characters of this wonderful race of animals,
which will be found in the following pages.*
* Dr. Savage's notes are divided into two parts : the first consisting of " observa-
tions on the external characters ;" and the second, of " facts relative to the habits of
the Chimpanzee.'' These will be distingnished from the remarks, which have been
added, by inverted commas. The measurements have been reduced to a tabular
form to facilitate comparisons. j. w.
on Troglodytes Niger. 363
The specific differences between the Chimpanzee or Simla
troglodytes of Africa, and the Ourang Outang or Simia satyrus
of Borneo, which were long indefinitely determined, have been
so completely demonstrated by the labors of St. Hilaire,*
Owen f and Vrolik that any remarks relative to this subject
would seem superfluous.
Geoff. St. Hilaire J had already established the differential
characters of the Subgenera Troglodytes and Pithecus, but
as they were drawn from immature specimens, they have been
modified by the more recent and extended researches of Prof.
Owen ; <§> and the characters of the first sub-genus now stand
as follows :
Sub-genus Troglodytes. Geoff.
Muzzle long ; truncated anteriorly ; strong superciliary
ridges, behind which the forehead recedes directly backwards ;
no cranial ridges.
Facial angle 35° — excluding the superciliary ridges.
Auricles large.
Ribs thirteen pairs ; bones of sternum forming a single
row.
Arms reaching below the knee-joint.
Feet wide, hallux extending to second joint of adjoining
toe.
Canines large, overpassing each other, the apices lodged in
the intervals of the opposite teeth.
Intermaxillary bones anchylosed to the maxillaries during
the first or deciduous dentition.
Ex. The Chimpanzee — Black Ourang — Pigmy — (Trog-
lodytes niger, Geoff. — Simia troglodytes, Blum.) Jocko, a
name for the young Chimpanzee.
Height of adult about four feet.||
* Annales du Museum, Tom. xix. p. 81.
t On the osteolog^'^ of the Chimpanzee and Orang-utan. By Richard Owen,
F. R. S. Trans. Zoolog. Soc. Lond. Vol. I. p. 343.
t Annales du Museum, Tom. xix. § Op. Cit. p. 372.
II It will he seen, however, from the measurements of Dr. Savage, that this
estimate is too low — and that it should be nearly live feet.
40*
364 Savage and Wyman
Hah. Africa.
External characters. " All short of five feet in height.
Thickly covered vv^ith coarse black hair varying from one to
two and a half inches in length ; most abundant on the back
beginning at the ears, and on the arms at the shoulders, and
increasing downwards; thinnest on the chest about the
mammae, upon the disc of the abdomen and on the inner side
of the arms ; thickest and at the same time shortest upon the
anterior and superior portions of the cranium, (which is much
flattened) and increasing in length as it descends posteriorly.
"The chin covered rather thickly with gray hairs from | to|
inch in length ; the face from the mouth superiorly as far as
superciliary ridges almost entirely naked, and the skin re-
markably shrunken and shrivelled, even in the youngest sub-
jects, presenting, to a nearly equal degree in all, the aspect of
extreme old age.
" One specimen was very old, a female ; the most palpable
marks of her age were a mottled appearance of the face — teeth
very short, worn down by use — grayness and dryness of the
hair generally, and the prominence and definiteness of the
superciliary ridges.
" Upon the sides of the face were a few scattered hairs,
increasing in number, length, and blackness, towards the ear,
presenting in their contour the appearance of bushy whiskers.
The nose was pointed and perfectly flat, lying on a plane with
the adjacent portions of the face.
"The superciliary ridges in all, remarkably prominent.
In the true representation of this feature every figure of the
animal that I have seen has failed. It is a palpable charac-
teristic constituting an important mark of difference between
this, and the red or Asiatic ourang; the greatest projection
rather exceeded 3-4 of an inch.
" The back of the fingers of the four extremities bare, ex-
cepting the first joint, where the hair commences and is directed
upwards as far as the elbow. It takes the same direction
along the back of the thighs ; on all other parts of the body
it is directed downwards.
on Troglodytes Niger, 365
^' The neck exceedingly short, and hardly admitting of more
than the simple rotatory motion, and that, apparently with
difficulty. In the living subject, when at rest, the head seems
to be set upon the shoulders. The freest motion given to
this part, is backwards and forwards, projecting the chin in an
upward direction to a remarkable degree, as is the case
whenever it utters a cry. At such times the lips are con-
tracted, and so far protruded, as to give them the form of a
somewhat flattened tube, when a hoarse guttural sound is
emitted, by quick and short expirations, something like ^ whoo '
* whoo ', not easily expressed. This sound, is induced by the
approach of almost any object, agreeable or disagreeable, and
accordingly is expressive of both joy and alarm. The cry of
the young is coarse and shrill, and much like that of a pettish
child ; at such times the mouth is widely opened, the eye-
brows strongly contracted, and teeth and gums strongly dis-
played.
" The color of the eyes is a light brown, perhaps approach-
ing a pink hue, but not characterized by that redness of the
sclerotica which usually appears in the colored plates of this
animal.
" The length of the legs was strikingly disproportioned to
that of the body and arms ; more however in appearance, than
in measurement, owing to the contraction of the legs from
long use in climbing. When the recent subject is placed in
the horizontal posture, the thighs are so flexed, as to form
almost a right angle with the axis of the body, and the legs
with that of the thighs ; the lower extremities are greatly
curved, and when the animal is in this position, lie more or
less on their tibial surfaces. This strong tendency to flexion
and contraction, is accounted for by the habits of the animal.
In a sitting posture it takes a perfect squat, the body in-
feriorly touching the ground, and the posterior surface of
the thighs resting upon that of the fore legs. The space
comprised between the ossa ischii, is very great and flat,
presenting in the horizontal posture a broad plane surface.
Their arrangements and relative position of parts, are a
366
Savage and Wyinan
wise provision in view of the habits of the animal, faciUtating
its movements, and enabhng it to take a broad and firm hold
in climbing trees, and in swinging from branch to branch, in
obedience to their instinctive propensities.
" The adults cannot spread out their hands in the manner
of man, their fingers being contracted, and curved, by long use
in grasping. When this is the case it is impossible to extend
them upon the palm. The contractions are such, as to render
it necessary for them to rest on their knuckles, when they
walk on all fours, instead of the palms of their hands ; in
consequence of which, the cuticle upon these parts is very
much thickened and prominent.
" The number of specimens of which I give the description
is four, viz., two males, and two females, one of which was
pregnant, and the other having a young male about a year
old. The latter was in my possession about two months,
having a wound in the left fore arm, of which it died. From
the adult specimens the following table of measurements has
been drawn up :
Table of Measurements.
I. Female.
II. Male.
III.
Male
|IV.
I'em.
it.
in.
ft.
in.
ft.
in.
ft.
in.
Whole length, ....
4
6
4
6
5 nearly
5 nearly
From occiput to extremity of os
coccygis,
2
8
2
2
2
Oh
2
Oh
From articulation of femur with pel-
vis to centre of knee joint,
From same to ankle,
Length of foot, ....
0
10
0
7
• • • •
• • • •
0
Uh
0 10
about 7
0
0
9
8
0
0
8
0
9i
From articulation of shoulder to the
olecranon, .....
1
'4
• •
• •
1
u
0
Hi
From olecranon to tip of longest
finger, ......
1
Si
• •
• •
1
Sh
1
8
Length of palm of hand,
" " longest finger.
...
0
4h
0
2
0
51
3
" " thumb, ....
........
0
0
Circumference of arm, largest part,
" thigh, " "
0
9h
2
(3
0
lOh
2
1
1
" chest,
. . .
• • • •
2
" abdomen " "
2
3
2
10
2
H
%-*. *J ^l v/ L t A v^ ' 4
Longest diameter of ear,
0
Shortest " " .
Articulation of clavicle with sternum
0
2
to symphysis pubis,
....
• •
• •
1
9
Os pubis to heel,
■ •
• •
1
8
....
....
on Trnglorhjtes Niger. 367
Additional Notes and Measurements of the above specimens.
" No. I. Female. Teeth. Incisors ^, canines |, molars |,
total 28. The canines in this individual were not fully de-
veloped, and the dentes sapiential had not yet protruded
through the gums. This specimen, had obviously not arrived
at maturity, as is sufficiently shown by the condition of the
teeth. It was however pregnant, the uterus being sufficiently
distended, to ascend above the brim of the pelvis. The ab-
domen presented no remarkable prominence, when compared
with that of the males, neither did the mammary region when
compared with the corresponding part of the other sex.
" The vulva and anus were surrounded by thick, flabby
folds of skin of a light dingy yellow, which were very protu-
berant. The former was situated posteriorly to the centre of
the body, and when the subject was placed in a sitting pos-
ture, could not be seen ; the latter was but partially visible.
This individual, though young, was thought by the natives to
be in her second pregnancy.
" No. II. Male. Teeth. Incisors |, canines |, molars | ;
total, 28. Canines not fully developed ; dentes sapientige
had not protruded. This was also a young specimen. The
skin was thicker, and much more tenacious than that of the
female.
" No. III. 31ale. Teeth. Incisors |, canines |, molars %
total, 32. In addition to the measurements given in the
table, the following additional ones were made. Width be-
tween great trochanters, 10| inches ; from central point of
chin to the centre of the superciliary ridges, 6 inches ; pos-
terior angle of lower jaw to the centre of chin, 5| inches ; lip
(mouth closed) 6 inches ; circumference of mouth 10| inches.
" Penis 2l inclies in length externally, tapering, small and
short in proportion to the animal, nothing resembling the
glans of human subject ; terminal portion of penis covered
with prepuce ; scrotum large and thick, furnished with a few
scattered hairs ; testicles very large, compared with the size
of the penis.
368 Savage a?id Wyman
^' This specimen had evidently arrived at maturity, though
not materially differing in size from the preceding. All its
teeth were fully developed, canines very prominent, and
strongly falciform, in this respect resembling an animal of
carnivorous habits. The superciliary ridges strongly pro-
jecting, leaving a deep and broad fossa at their base supe-
riorly, about one third the distance from the outer angle.
These fossae exist in all specimens, but their depth and size,
are strong indications of the age of the individual.
" No. IV. Female. Teeth. Incisors |, canines |, molars
i5 ; total, 32. The incisors were reduced, apparently to one
half the natural length by long use, showing extreme old age.
The skin of the face was very much shrivelled, of a darker
hue than that of either of the preceding, and mottled with
irregular dark purple spots. The breasts were flabby and
slightly protuberant, the nipples measuring one inch in length.
When shot she had two young ones, a male and female ; the
former was captured, and in my possession. Milk could be
forced in drops from the breasts. The anterior angle of the
vulva was situated at the distance of five and a quarter inches
from the symphysis pubis, and in common with the anus
surrounded by thick and very protuberent folds of yellowish
skin, covered with hair. In the sitting posture the vulva was
entirely concealed. This enlargement of the skin forms an
elastic cushion, having a depth of more than three inches,
forming in the female a substitute for nates, which are almost
entirely wanting. The skin of the body generally, was of a
thinner and softer texture than that of the other specimens.
There is no great difference between the texture of the skin of
males and females, that of the former being comparatively
very thick and tough.
'' In every specimen, the insertion of the great toe or thumb
of the posterior hand, differed materially from the representa-
tion in all the figures which I have seen, being situated much
more anteriorly. In Sir William Jardine's Naturalist's Library,
it is placed much too near the heel. I have found it much
more anteriorly, certainly two thirds the length of the foot
on Troglodytes Niger. 369
from the heel. In this as in some other particulars, it would
seem that the animal has been confounded with the Orang
Outang, or Red Ourang of Asia. I am inclined to think
that the insertion of the thumb will be found to be an impor-
tant specific character in the Chimpanzee. It will be per-
ceived also that the remark of Cuvier that ' the cranium re-
treats from the crest of the eyebrow ' is incorrect ; the great
projection of the superciliary ridges in the Chimpanzee con-
stituting a strong mark of difference between it and the
Ourang."
Osteology.
The memoir of Professor Owen,* which has already been
so frequently referred to, contains so full and complete a
description of the osteology of the Chimpanzee, that it will
be only necessary, to point out some of the peculiarities, in
which the specimens which I have had an opportunity of ex-
amining, differ from the descriptions given by him. The
differences which have been noticed, may without doubt, be
for the most part attributable to age, yet, even in this point of
view, they will unquestionably not be regarded as destitute of
interest, inasmuch, as they detract somewhat from the value
of the specific characters of secondary importance, established
by Professor Owen.
Crania. The observations upon and measurements of the
crania, are drawn from two adult specimens, one of which,
forms a part of Dr. Savage's collection, and for the other I
am indebted to the kindness of Dr. J. C. Warren. The third
specimen was that of an immature subject, the skeleton of
which was deposited in the Society's Collection by Dr.
Winslow Lewis, Jr., by whom it was prepared.
No. I. Adult. In its general conformation corresponds
with Professor Owen's description, the bony covering of the
brain having an ovoidal form, broadest behind, smooth on its
superior and lateral faces ; the temporal depression which
* Op. cit. vol. i. p. 343.
370 Savage and Wyman
forms the outline of the insertion of the temporal muscle,
extending in a curved direction from the external orbitar
process of the frontal bone, as far backwards as the posterior
lateral portion of the cranium, then sweeping forwards and
downwards, terminates in a bony protuberance, situated just
above the external meatus andilorius. The space comprised
superiorly between these two depressions, forms a slightly
elevated ridge or belt on the coronal region, one and a half
inch wide in the centre, but slightly increasing in width as it
approaches the occiput behind, or the superciliary ridges in
front. The latter, which form so striking a characteristic in
the living animal, are still more conspicuous in the cranium
when denuded of its soft parts, projecting to the distance of
half an inch beyond the central portion of the frontal region,
and at the superior external angle of the orbit in front of the
temporal fossae they project to the distance of an inch, so
that, when the skull is viewed in front, they project beyond,
and conceal the outline of, the lateral portions of the cranium.
Professor Owen, in describing the sutures, says, '' the cra-
nial sutures which are obliterated in the adults of the Ourang,
the syndactylous apes, and frequently in the adult crania of
the baboons, are for the most part, persistent in the Chimpanzee,
and the coronal and sagittal sutures, have the true denticulated
structure. The sagittal suture is not continued along the
frontal bone. The squamous suture is partially lost, but suffi-
cient remains to show that the anterior angle of the temporal
joins the frontal, and separates the parietal bones from the
sphenoidal, as in six out of seven skulls of the Chimpanzee
which I have examined."* The sutures thus persistent, have
been distinctly figured in the plate representing a lateral view
of tlie cranmm. In the present specimen scarcely any of
the sutures, belonging to any portion of the cranium are
persistent. Coossification on the coronal and lateral regions
has proceeded so far, as to render it almost impossible to
trace even the position which the sutures formerly occu-
Op. cit. vol. i, p. 346.
on Troglodytes Niger. 371
pied. The only one in the whole cranium which remains
open, is the lambdoidal, and that only for the distance of
about one inch from its commencement in the foramen for
the exit of the great lateral sinuses. The petrous portion of
the temporal bone, does not appear to be coossified with the
sphenoid or basilar portion of the occiput by which it is sur-
rounded. All the bones of the face are completely united,
not one suture remaining: open — the ossa nasi are scarcely
to be distinguished from the adjacent portions of the superior
maxillaries, and the outlines of the lachrymal, malar, maxil-
lary and palatine bones have entirely disappeared.
The foramina of the basis cranii correspond almost exactly
with Professor Owen's drawing of this part. The infra orbitar
foramina are said by him to be single,* but in the present
instance there are two, quite distinct from each other, the one
being a little above the other on each side of the face, and
the superior foramen being a little nearer the median line
than the inferior. The existence of a single infra orbitar
foramen, is regarded by him as one of the characters by which
the cranium of the Chimpanzee is distinguished from that of
the Ourang of Borneo — there being generally three in the
latter. Foramen incisivum single. ^
Dental formula. Incisors | ; canines | ; bicuspids | ; mo-
lars f ; total, 32.
The superior canines are separated from the incisors, by
an interval for the admission of the canines of the lower jaw,
but, in the lower jaw itself, no such interval exists, the canine
being separated from the contiguous bicuspid and incisor, by
a space less than half that which exists between the incisors.
In the interval which separates the incisors of both the upper
and lower jaw, the Chimpanzee presents a striking contrast
with the conformation of the human cranium. The molars
on each side, above and below, form an unbroken series, pre-
senting no interval whatever. From the appearance of the
teeth, it is perfectly obvious that they had suffered from long
♦ Op. cit. vol. i. p. 359.
372 Savage and Wyman
usage, all being much worn, and the enamel having disap-
peared from the crowns of all, excepting the dentes sapientiae.
The incisors above and below, were so far worn, as to expose
the pulp cavity, and the canines of the lower jaw so far
truncated, as not to project above the contiguous incisors ;
upper canines also worn to nearly the same extent. An-
other very striking peculiarity exists, and which has been dis-
tinctly figured by Professor Owen as existing in the Ourang
Outang,* viz. that of the central incisors of both jaws being
more worn thtin the lateral ones, so that when the jaws are
closed, an oval space is left between them.
Two anterior condyloid foramina exist on one side, and
but one foramen on the other.
No. II. This cranium presented the same general characters
as the preceding, except that the coronal belt or inter-parietal
space was narrowest at its posterior portion near the occiput.
The obliteration of the sutures was even more extensive than
in the preceding, the lambdoidal only remaining open for the
distance of a quarter of an inch — with this exception all the
bones of the cranium were coossified into one inseperable
mass.
Three distinct infra-orbitar foramina existed in this specimen,
two of nearly equal size situated in the same horizontal line,
instead of being one above the other, as in the preceding, and
a third much smaller about half way between them and the
lower margin of the orbit.
Foramen incisivum single, and two anterior condyloid
foramina on each side. The lower jaw was wanting, and the
incisors and canines had disappeared from the upper. The
molars and bicuspeds as in No. I. presented a continuous
series, and the enamel was worn through in many places on
the surfaces of the crowns.
From the above observations, it will be obvious that the
crania were those of aged individuals, and that in them an
obliteration of the sutures takes place as in the Ourang of
* Trans. Zoological Society, vol. ii. p. 165.
071 Troglodytes Niger.
373
Borneo — though, perhaps, at a later period of life. "The
persistence of the cranial sutures," therefore, ceases to be a
specific character of the Cliimpanzee. The existence of two
infra-orbitar foramina in one specimen, and of three in the
other, would seem to show, that in this respect, the Ourang and
Chimpanzee did not materially differ ; and the same remark
holds good with regard to the anterior condyloid foramina,
which are enumerated by Prof. Owen, among the distinctive
marks of the two species.
The adjoined table is intended to give the comparative
measurments of the two crania, which will be found to coin-
cide very nearly with each other, and if comparison be insti-
tuted between them, and the dimensions given by Prof. Owen,
the correspondence will be found equally striking.
Tahle of Measurements of the two adiiJt crania.
No. 1. (No. II
edge
edge
Length of head from most prominent part of occiput to end of!
incisor, ..,.......!
From same part of occiput to outer edge of superciliary ridge .
median line, .......
From same point of ridge to edge of incisor,
Vertex to condyle of occiput lowest point, .
Diameter through post-auditory ridges,
" behind orbits, ......
Width of coronal belt, narrowest part,
Diameter of face at zygoma, most prominent point, .
Length of zygomatic fossa, .....
Breadth of " "
Diameter of face from outsides of orbits on level with lower
Interorbital space, narrowest part, ....
Lateral diameter of orbit, ......
Perpendicular diameter of orbit, ....
Nasal aperture transverse diameter, ....
'' " perpendicular, .....
Distance between infra orbital foramina (lower).
Breadth of maxilla superior, .....
Length of bony palate, ......
Anterior margin of intermaxillaries to foramen incisivum,
Breadth of crown of first incisor, ....
Space between canine and incisor (upper),
'♦ " " " " lower, .
Anterior margin of occipital foramen to posterior margin of
palate, ...... . .
Lower jaw from centre of condyle to symphysis on upper
Angle to symphysis lower edge,
Angle to condyle,
Between angles, .
Breadth of ramus,
Between mental foramina, .
in.
7.3
5.2
3.7
3.9
4.6
27
1.5
4.6
1.8
1.0
4.0
0.7
1 5
1.2
1.1
1.0
2.2
24
2.7
0.9
0.4
0.3
0.5
2.1
4.5
3.1
2.3
3.0
1.5i
1 8
in.
7.6
5.3
3.7^
3.9
4.7
2.7
0.9
4.7
ISh
1.0
39
0.8
1.5
1.4
0.9-^
l.Oi
2.1
24
2.7
o.si
2.3
374 Savage and Wyman
No. III. Young. The skeleton to which this cranium be-
longs, was prepared by Dr. Winslow Lewis, Jr., and deposited
in the Society's cabinet. Its entire length is twenty-seven
inches, and it is supposed to be about twenty-two months old,
and was born on shipboard while the mother was on her passage
from Borneo to the United States. The mother was reported
to have been born in Borneo, but I have learned from the
officers of the vessel, that she was carried there from Africa.
The skin which is now^ in the Boston Museum, has all the
characteristics of the African Ourang, and the skeleton also
conforms w^ith it.
The frontal bone consists of a single piece, the suture be-
tween the two lateral portions having entirely disappeared.
The superciliary ridges though less strongly marked than in
the adult, contrast strongly with the same parts in two crania
of the young satyrus, with which I have compared them.
The squamous suture and its ad dit amentum form a nearly con-
tinuous horizontal line, and the two extremities are nearly
equidistant from the auditory foramen. A small os triqueirum
exists at the union of the occiput with the parietals. Occipital
bone approaches the quadrumanous type in having its lateral
edges nearly parallel, so that the suture by which it is united
w^ith the surrounding bones has no longer the lambdoidal
shape, and its inferior portion which is posterior to the foramen
magnum is nearly quadrangular. Temporal bone reaches the
frontal, separating the sphenoidal from the parietal.
Only one infra-orbitar foramen on each side ; no supra-
orbitar foramen existed. Ossa nasi were disunited, but there
existed no trace of the intermaxillary sutures.
Dental formula, incisors | canines = molars | total 18. The
two central incisors of the lower jaw, if they had ever appear-
ed, had fallen ; no alveolus, however, was detected.
Vertebral column. In its general conformation the verte-
bral column does not differ materially from that of man,
excepting in the length of the spinous processes of the cervi-
cal, and the comparative size of the lumbar and dorsal verte-
bra?. With regard to the vertebrie of the neck, Prof. Owen
on Troglodytes Niger.
37
o
remarks, " the spines are simple and elongated, not short and
bifurcated as in the human subject; that of the third vertebrae
is the shortest with the exception of the atlas, where, as is
usually the case, the spine is wanting." In the present case
the atlas had been accidentally lost, but of the six remaining
cervical vertebrae tbe spinous process of the dentatus or second
was the shortest, and the extremity of which was distinctly
bifurcated; those of the remaining vertebrae increased regu-
larly in length and strength, from the third to the seventh, as
will be seen from the following measurements taken from the
inside of the spinal canal to the tip of the process.
Cervical vertebrae.
(Length of spinous process of the
2.
06
3.
O.Si
6.
0.9^ 0.9i
6.
10
' M
The body of the 7th does not differ from the 2d so
much in its transverse diameter as in man, in the Chimpanzee
there being only a difference of 0.2| of an inch, whereas in
man it amounts to 0.4 of an inch. As is often the case with
man the 7th presents only a notch instead of a foramen for
the passage of the vertebral artery, a short spine projecting
in front of the latter from either side.
The dorsal vertebrae are thirteen, and the lumbar only four
in number, the latter being proportionally smaller than in man,
"where they are enlarged to afford a basis of support to the
column above in reference to his erect position." The com-
parative size and strength, of different portions of the vertebral
column in man, and the Chimpanzee, are sufficiently well
shown by the following table of admeasurements.
Transverse diameter of the lower
face of the . . .1st dorsal
12th "
1st Lumbar or 13th "
3(1 lumbar
4th
Man
in.
Chimp,
in.
Diff. 1
Man
in.
Chimp,
in.
1.3 )
i.sii
1.9i)
2 1ii
1 7
1.1 ]
1 .3.i
15 i
1.4
0.5i
02
0.2i
o.ii
376 Savage and Wyman on Troglodytes Niger,
False vertebrae. The transverse portions of the first, second
and third, articulate with the iliac bones. The spinal canal is
complete as far as the sixth false vertebra, but is here very
much compressed — the seventh, though intimately united
with the preceding and forming with it an additional pair of
sacral foramina, is not closed up behind, so that properly
speaking there is no spinal canal. The eighth or terminal,
was styliform, but it is probable, that one intermediate between
it and the preceding may have been lost, so that the whole
number would be nine.
Pelvis. '' The pelvis of the Chimpanzee differs from that of
man, in all those particulars, which characterize the quadra-
mana, and which relate to the imperfection of their means of
maintaining the erect position. The iliac bones are long,
straight, and expanded outwardly above, but narrow in pro-
portion to their length ; the posterior surface is concave for
the lodgment of the gluta?i muscles ; the anterior surface
nearly flat, and stretching outward almost parallel with the
plane of the sacrum. The whole pelvis is placed more in a
line with the spine than in man ; its superior aperture is
elongated and narrow, so that the whole of the sacrum and
coccyx is visible on a front view." " With this general con-
formity with the quadrumanous type, there is however a pro-
vision for a more extended attachment of the glutaei muscles,
in a greater breadth of the ilia between the superior spinous
processes, which also incline forwards more than is observable
in the inferior Simiae, and it may thence be inferred that the
semi-erect position is more easily maintained in the Chim-
panzee." *
* Owen, Op. cit. vol. i. p. 351.
PL. XII.
F infirm »•■
PI13
>r!il.^
fih
• y;
ri
W,llAlfrti JdL
i l.H
y^i^
PI. 15 I
f
i
I
^
JPKinLuiddti
PI. 16
4"
la
^
^d
<%
Ik
^
17
//
P
\2y
^^
A
/ .^
15
.-C^^ (
/nw
\\
1.;
\
(-
^
■i
r
)>
i.i
c
.<
*^
;/
I / flf^p//?
a iV nuftu/ujuTUM.
10.11 P penl.>d4fn
IS j» /W/«T
2 .
6 A cffonXtzia..
8. fi. strata
9 . 6»uJJu.
12 . prvarni
rupuoia.
itrnJit.
16 . /'.
17 /7 ..
•f^anSc
BOSTON
lURNAL OF NATURAL HISTORY.
CONTAINING
APERS AND COM MUM CATIONS
READ BEFORE THE
Boston Socutt) of Jfatural Qlstorj),
AND PUBLISHED BY THEIR DIRECTION.
VOL. IV.— NO. 4.
PUBLISHING COIVIMITTEE.
AMOS BLNXEY,
'HADDEUS \V. HARRIS,
AUGUSTUS A. GOULD,
D. HUMPHREYS STORER,
CHARLES K. DILLAWAY.
BOSTON:
< .i.x,. ' . T.TTTT.'R ^yr> tamt:s RKOWV
1644.
PRI.STED UEEMAN EOLLES.
CONTENTS OF NO. IV
Art. XXX. — Observations on the External Characters and Habits of the
Troglodytes Niger, Geoff. By Thomas S. Savage, M. D., Corresponding
Member of the Boston Society of Natural History — and on its Organi-
zation, by Jeffries Wyman, M. D. (Continued from page 376.) . 37(
Art. XXXI. — Descriptions and Figures of the Araneides of ihe United
States. By N. M. Hentz, (continued from p. 231), . . . 37e
Art. XXXII. — Description of an African Beetle, allied to Scarabaeus
Polyphemus, with Remarks upon some other Insects of the same
Group. By T. W. Harris, M. D 39"
Art. XXXIII. — On the Importance of Habit as a Guide to Accuracy in
systematical Arrangement, illustrated in the Instance of the Sylvia
petechia of Wilson, and all subsequent writers. By Thomas McCul-
loch, Jr . m
Art. XXXIV. — On the Anatomy of Tebennophorus Carolmensis. By
Jeffries Wyman, M. D. . . ^Ut
Aut. XXXV. — On the anatomical Structure of Glandina truncata of Say.
By Jeffries Wyman, M. D 41(
Art. XXXVI. — Beauraontite and Lincolnite identical with Heulandile.
By Francis Alger. 42S
Art. XXXVII. — Probable Influence of Icebergs upon Drift. By J. L.
Hayes,
Art. XXXVIII. — Descriptions of Land Shells from the Province of Ta-
voy, in British Burmah. By Augustus A. Gould, M. D. . .
Art. XXXIX. — Descriptions and Habits of some of the Birds of Yuca-
tan. By Samuel Cabot, Jr., M. D. 460
it. XL. — Enumeration of the recent freshwater Mollusca which are
common to North America and Europe ; with Observations on Species
and their Distribution. By S. S. Halderman
Art. XLI. — Descriptions and Notices of some of the Land Shells of
Cuba. By Augustus A. Gould, M. D
Art. XLII. — Mineralogical Notices. By J. E. Tescheraacher,
Art. XLIII. — Analysis of Pink Scapolite, and of Cerium Ochre, from
Bolton, Mass. By Charles T. Jackson.
BOSTON
JOURNAL OF NATURAL HISTORY.
Vol. IV.
JANUARY, 1844.
No. 4.
Akt. XXX. — observatioxs on the external characters
AND HABITS OF THE TROGLODYTES NIGER, Geoff. By Thomas
S. Savage, M. D., Corresponding Member of the Boston Society of
Natural History — AND ON ITS ORGANIZATION, by Jeffries Wy-
MAN, M. D.
(Continued from page 376.)
From the following table of measurements it will be found
that the proportions are almost precisely the same as in that
given by Professor Owen.
Breadth of pelvis from one anterior spine of ilium to the other,
Breadth of ilium, .....
Length of OS innominatum, ....
Antero-posterior diameter, ....
Transverse diameter, .....
Length of symphysis pubis from above downwards,
Longest diameter of obturator foramen.
From anterior-superior spine of ilium to acetabulum.
Outside of one tuber ischii to that of the other.
Anterior-superior spine of ilium to symphysis,
inches.
)ther,
94
4.4
•
10.2
5.7
•
3.-5
1.4
,
l.Si
43
•
5.8
7.3i
Extremities. As regards the osteology of the superior and
inferior extremities, their conformation corresponds so well
with the descriptions given by Professor Owen, that no farther
remarks seem necessary, except that the present specimen con-
firms his observations with regard to the existence of a depres-
sion for the insertion of the ligamentum teres into the head of
the femur, a conformation which affords us a sure means of
41
378 Savage and Wyman
distinguishing the femur of the Chimpanzee from that of the
Ourang Outang.*
Young skeleton. The pieces which compose the vertebral
column were in all 33, viz. :
Cervical, 7
Dorsal, 13
Lumbar, 4
Sacral and Coccygeal, 9
The body of the atlas was still ununited to its wings, and
the clentatus was already beginning to be bifurcated. The
fourth lumbar had already reached the ilia, and its transverse
processes were beginning to be flattened at their extremities,
in the same manner as the sacral vertebrfE. The number o)
bones united with the ilia independent of the fourth lumbal
is in this instance four, diflering in this respect from the
description of the adult in the preceding pages, where the
number is three, and still more from that of Professor Owen,
who describes but two false vertebra) having any connection
with the iliac bones. Professor Owen describes but seven
false vertebra?, and in speaking of the last, says, " the seventh
seems to be composed of two joined together ; but this ap-
pearance may result from the partial ossification of the sciatic
ligaments ; and this is the more probable as in the skeletons
of the young Chimpanzee preserved in the Hunterian Mu-
seum, after the four lumbar vertebra? there remain only seven
for the sacrum and coccyx." From this it would appear that
the entire number of pieces composing the vertebral column
was but tliirty-one, whereas in Dr. Lewis's skeleton it amount-
* Dr. John Jeffries, in the Boston Journal of Philosophy, Vol. TI., has given a
detailed account of the dissection of an Ourang Outang, and in describing the hip
joint, says, " the articulation of the femur with the acetabulum is almost exactly like
man's," which would naturally lead us to infer (as Professor Owen remarks, since
nothing is said to the contrary) that a ligamentum teres really existed. The speci-
men in question still exists in the Cabinet of the Boston Society of Natural History,
and by the kindness of Dr. Jeffries I have had an opportunity of making the ex-
amination necessary for deciding whether this is really the case. The skeleton
being a ligamentary one, the hip joint had not been opened, and on softening the
parts, and turning out the head of the femur, no ligament nor any depression what-
ever corresponding to that which exists in man and the Chimpanzee was found,
the articulating surface being uniformly smooth and convex.
on Troglodytes Niger. 379
ed to thirty-three, precisely the same as in man. The num-
ber of sacral foramina in Dr. Lewis's skeleton was only four,
whereas in Professor Owen's and Dr. Savage's there were five.
The sternum is composed of five bony pieces, all in the
same line ; the first of which is quadrangular, broadest above,
the others very nearly circular. The coracoid bone is entirely
unossified with the scapula. Ilium, ischium and os pubis un-
united in the acetabulum, though the ischium and os pubis
were perfectly co-ossified below the symphysis. The iliac
crests ascend as high as the superior face of the third lumbar
vertebra, the intervertebral substance being in a dried state.
Arms. The whole skeleton being extended in a straight
line the tips of the longest fingers reached as low as the mid-
dle of the tibia. The forearm was about half an inch shorter
than the humerus, and the hand and wrist were nearly as
long as the radius. The tip of the thumb reached to the
distal extremity of the first metacarpal bone.
Legs. Femur a little longer than the tibia, and the feet
almost precisely of the same length as the hands. Thumbs
longer than those of hands, and extending as far as the distal
termination of the first phalanx of the first toe.
Anterior extremities from head of humerus to tip of the
middle finsfer seventeen inches. Posterior extremities from
head of femur to lower face of os calcis, twelve and a half
inches. Entire length of skeleton, twenty-seven inches.
The above skeleton being entirely ligamentous, and the
bones not having been in any instance detached from each
other, there can be no question as to any error having arisen
from this source, as to their number, &c. It will be obvious
that the number of vertebrae is greater than in either the
skeleton described by Professor Owen, or in that sent to the
Society by Dr. Savage. The difference too in Dr. Lewis's
skeleton as to the number of sacral foramina, and the number
of vertebra?, which articulate with the ilia is also striking.
Whether this may be a specific difl^erence or not I will not
pretend to say ; if so, these are the only characters wliich I
have been able to find, which distinguish it from the Troglo-
dytes niger, Geoflf.
380 Savage and Wyman
Organs of generation in the male. The free and pen-
dulous portion of the penis was two inches in length, the
prepuce being capable of retraction as far as within an half
inch of the pubes. Properly speaking there is no corona
glandis, but the glans itself measures one and half inches in
length, of an elongated conical shape, and is perforated in its
axis by the urethra, the meatus externus of which is trans-
verse instead of being vertical, as in man.* No appearance
whatever of a frenum. Length of the whole organ from
union of the crura to the tip of the glans six inches. Mem-
branous portion of urethra one and half inch long and sur-
rounded by an erectile tissue ; bulb very distinct. Erectores
penis much more powerful than in man ; ejaculatores seminis still
more remarkable, measuring three and a half inches in length,
covering the membranous portion and the bulb of the urethra.
The prostate has the same relation to the neck of the bladder
as in man, except that it does not as in him encircle the ure-
thra, but grows thinner as it extends up on the sides. In
its general form it may be called funnel-shaped, having its
larger portion directed backwards, and is perforated longitudi-
nally for the passage of the excretory ducts of the testes.
VesiculcB seminahs. In comparison with man these acquire
an enormous size, each of them measuring four and half inches
in length, and one inch in the widest part — they converge
and meet on the median line, and at the point of union are
enveloped by the prostate gland. The scrotum which Tyson
has very well described, " was not pendulous as in man, but
more contracted, and pursed up by the outward skin, nearer
to the OS pubis, and seated by the sides of the penis," the tes-
ticles " being contracted up nearer to the body of the penis ;
which seems to be a wise contrivance of nature ; for hereby
these parts are less exposed to the injuries they might other-
wise receive in climbing trees, or other accidents in the woods."
Female organs. The general appearance of the vulva cor-
* Tyson, in his description Op. cit. p. 45, says, the penis " had no frenum so that
the prepuce could be retracted wholly down, and herein our pygmie is different from
a man. The slit of the penis here was perpendicular as in man."
071 Troglodytes Niger. 381
responds with Dr. Savage's descriptions on page 368, though
the folds of the skin by which it is surrounded are less strongly
naarked, in consequence of the separation of the parts from
the body, and long maceration. The most remarkablepeca-
liarity is the great size of the clitoris, which at first view re-
sembles the glans penis of the human subject just projecting
from the surrounding parts ; it is somewhat flattened in its
shape, measuring one and three fourths inch in its transverse
and about three fourths in its vertical diameter, and supported
on each side by a fold of the common integuments; this or-
gan projects externally about three fourths of an inch. The
nymphae were not very strongly marked, that on the left side
being the most prominent. At the orifice of the vagina, were
seen three small triangular shaped prominences, which bore
some resemblance to the carunculae myrtiformes in the hu-
man subject. The vagina measured three and a half inches in
length, and was of sufficient diameter to admit without difficulty
two fingers. The uterus, in its general outline, resembles the
human though less pyriform, and seems very small in propor-
tion to the vagina, its transverse diameter is one and a half inch,
and its longitudinal two and a half inches. Superiorly it is flat-
tened, but cylindrical at its cervix. The anterior lip of the os
uteri was the longest and slightly bilobed, the posterior being
completely so. Round ligaments stronger than in the human
female; broad ligaments not materially different ; ovaries situ-
ated on the posterior face of the latter, the oviduct forming its
upper border. Free extrem.ity of the oviduct fimbriated ; in-
ner surface of the uterus folded longitudinally in its cervix ;
cavity of this organ less triangular than in the human female;
relative position of uterus, rectum and bladder the same.
Larynx ; this organ diflers remarkably from that of man in
being provided with a large membranous pouch communi-
cating with the ventricles and capable of inflation at the will
of the animal. In the young specimen, already spoken of,
this pouch presented a conformation diflerent from that de-
scribed by Vrolik and other writers on the subject. Instead
of being a simple pouch as usually described, it was bifur-
382 Savage and Wyman
cated opposite the middle of the larynx, each branch having a
pyriform shape and extending beneath the clavicle quite to the
axilla. The hyoid bone projects anteriorly beyond the thy-
roid cartilage, more than in man. Tiie platysma muscles
serve as compressors of the laryngeal pouch, meeting on the
median line from the chin to the top of the sternum, and
leave no vacant triangular space as in man.
^^ Facts illustrative of the habits of the Troglodytes niger, or
Black Orang of Africa.
" The face of the country around Cape Palmas is broken,
but not to that degree in which it might be called mountainous.
As we proceed into the interior, a constant succession of hill
and dale is seen ; the former, often with sides abrupt, and
crowned with lofty trees ; the latter bearing coarse grass, and
shrubbery with numerous palm trees interspersed. The soil
upon the hills is clayey, strongly colored with *oxide of iron,
and has often widely scattered uj)on the surface fragments of
sienite and quartz, the latter in much less quantity. The val-
leys are not extensive. Their soil is sandy, abounding in
ferns, and, when fertile is made so by a loose admixture of
light vegetable matter, which is soon exhausted by cultivation,
and the sweeping rains. Fruit trees of different kinds are
found abundantly both on the hills and in the valleys. Their
fruits, though crude, and mostly unacceptable to the human
palate, afford a great variety to the Chimpanzee ; coming to
maturity at different seasons, their succession of crops yield
an almost never-failing supply.
" In some localities, through extensive clearing of the land
by the natives for the purpose of planting rice, a scarcity will
exist at certain seasons. The tender foliage of particular
trees then becomes a substitute. The trees from which their
food is derived, are generally scattered, except perhaps the
Elais guiniensis, which, if not cut down, will be found abundant
everywhere. The Palm nut — its fruit, is freely eaten by the
orang, as also the upper part of its stipe formed of the young,
071 Troglodytes Niger. 381.
succulent leaves. This, vulgarly called the ^cabbage/ is con-
sidered a delicacy by the natives also, either in a crude or
cooked state. Their knowledge of its edible quality, as well
as that of the fruits generally, was obtained from the monkeys.
It is a common saying among them, that, 'what is good for
monkey is good for man.' I have found different fruits in
the maw which are recognised as ' plums,' one of which only
is known botanically — the P armarium excelsum. The fruit
of the Carica papaya would seem to be its greatest favorite —
from its saccharine quality, as I suppose. The Musa sapien-
tium and paradisiaca are also freely eaten, and, three species
of Amomum, A. azfelii, A. grandijlorum 1 and a third unde-
scribed. There are other fruits of which they are fond, but,
not having obtained the flowers, 1 am unable to name them
botanically ; — one, called a cherry, is pleasantly acid ; an-
other, called a walnut, is not unlike the fruit of the Juglans
nigra, both in the husk, in its green state, and the nut — these
they crack with stones precisely in the manner of human
beings.
" The strong development of the canine teeth in the adult
would seem to indicate a carnivorous propensity ; but, in no
state save that of domestication do they manifest it. At first
they reject flesh, but easily acquire a fondness for it. The
canines are early developed, and evidently designed to act the
important part of weapons of defence. When in contact with
man, almost the first effort of the animal is — to bite.
" They avoid the abodes of men, and build their habitations
in trees. Their construction is more that of 7165^5 than of huts,
as they have been erroneously termed by some naturalists.
They generally build not far above the ground. Branches or
twigs are bent or partly broken and crossed, and the w^hole
supported by the body of a limb, or a crotch. Sometimes a
nest will be found near the end of a strong leafy branch twenty
or thirty feet from the ground. One 1 have lately seen that
could not be less than forty feet, and more probably it was
fifty. But this is an unusual height.
" Their dwelling place is not permanent, but changed in pur-
384 Savage and Wyman
suit of food and solitude, according to the force of circum-
stances. We more often see them in elevated places ; but
this arises from the fact that the low grounds being more
favorable for the natives' rice-farms, are the oftener cleared,
and, hence, are almost always wanting in suitable trees for
their nests. The same remark holds also in respect to the
fruit trees upon which they depend for subsistence ; except
perhaps the Elais guiniensis or ' Pahn tree.^ This is pro-
tected from the destructive effects of the fire with which the
land is cleared, by the peculiar arrangement of its leaf stalks.
It is seldom that more than one or two nests are seen upon
the same tree or in the same neighborhood ; five have been
found, but it was an unusual circumstance.
" They do not live in ' villages,' as stated by some in re-
spect to other localities. They are more often seen in pairs
than in gangs. They are more numerous in the months of
September, October and November, when the natives ' leave
the hush,^ that is, have gathered in their rice-crops, being the
less exposed to interruption in their habits. Then, also, is the
season when the greatest number of fruits come to maturity.
The cherries and plums, both acid and sweet, are then ob-
tained in abundance.
" When at rest, the sitting posture is that generally assumed.
They are sometimes seen standing and walking, but when
thus detected they immediately ' take to all fours,' and flee
from the presence of the observer. Such is their organization,
that they cannot stand erect, but lean forward. Hence, they
are seen when standing, with the hands clasped over the occi-
put or the lumbar region, which would seem necessary to
balance, or ease of posture.
" The toes of the adult are strongly flexed, and turned in-
wards, and cannot be perfectly straitened. In the attempt,
the skin gathers into thick folds on the back, showing that
the full expansion of the foot, as is necessary in walking, is
unnatural. The natural position is upon ' all fours,^ the
body anteriorly resting upon the knuckles. These are greatly
enlarged, with the skin protuberant and thickened like the
on Troglodytes Niger. 3S5
sole of the foot. They are expert cUmbers, as one would
suppose, from their organization. In their gambols they
swing from limb to limb, to a great distance, and leap with
astonishing agility. It is not unusual to see ' the old folks,'
(in the language of an observer) sitting under a tree regaling
themselves with fruit and friendly chat, while ' their children '
are leaping around them and swinging from branch to branch
in boisterous merriment.
" As seen here, they cannot be called gregarious, seldom
more than five or ten at most being found together. It has
been said on good authority, that they occasionally assemble
in large numbers, in gambols. My informant asserts that he
saw once not less than fifty so engaged ; hooting, screaming,
and drumming with sticks upon old logs, which is done in the
latter case, with equal facility by the four extremities.
'•' They do not appear ever to act on the offensive, and sel-
dom if ever really, on the defensive. When about to be cap-
tured, they resist by throwing their arms about their oppo-
nent, and attempting to draw him into contact with the teeth.
Biting is their principal act of defence. I have seen one
man who had been thus severely wounded in the feet.
" They are very filthy in their habits. In a state of domes-
tication they will eat their own excrements. It is a tradition
with the natives generally here, that they were once members
of their own tribe; that for their depraved habits they were
expelled from all human society, and, that through an obsti-
nate indulgence of their vile propensities they have degener-
ated into their present state and organization. They are,
however, eaten by them, and, when cooked with the oil and
pulp of the palm nut, considered a highly palatable morsel.
'' They exhibit a remarkable degree of intelligence in their
habits, and, on the part of the mother, much affection for
their young. The second female described, was upon a tree
w^hen first discovered, with her mate and two young ones,
(a male and female.) Her first impulse was to descend with
great rapidity and ' make off"' into the thicket with her mate
and female offspring. The young male remaining behind,
42
386 Hentz^s Descriptiojis of the
she soon returned alone to his rescue. She ascended and
took him in her arms, at which moment she was shot ; the
ball passing through the fore arm of the young one in its
course to the heart of the mother. Other instances have
been known in which the mother, otherwise timid and fleeing
from the presence of man, forsaken by her mate, has fallen a
sacrifice to the force of natural affection. In a recent case,
the mother, when discovered, remained upon the tree with
her offspring, watching intently the movements of the hunter.
As he took aim, she motioned with her hand precisely in the
manner of a human being, to have him desist and go away.
When the wound has not proved instantly fatal, they have
been known to stop the flow of blood by pressing with the
hand upon the part, and when this did not succeed, to apply
leaves and grass.
When shot they give a sort of screech not very unlike that
of a human being in sudden and acute distress. In their
gambols, their cry is like the whoop of a native, varied as
to volume and strength, which, with the drumming upon logs
and other discordant noises and various uncouth movements,
make up a scene perfectly unique, defying all descripti on.
ART. XXXI. — DESCRIPTIONS AND FIGURES OF THE ARANEIDES
OF THE UNITED STATES. By Nicholas Mahcellus Hentz, Flor-
ence, Alabama.
[Continued from page 231.]
3. LYCOSA LENTA.
Plate XVII. Figs. 1—4.
Description, Piceous, hairy ; cephalothorax, with a waved
fascia of a dark color and several pale marks. Abdomen with
two longitudinal rows of indistinct black spots above, beneath
with a large black spot, with a yellowish mark in the centre.
A pale variety occurred in North Carolina, without the yellow
mark.
Araneides of the United States. 387
Observations. This common and powerful species is found
wandering in fields, attacking and subduing very large insects.
The female carries her young on her back, which gives her a
horrible appearance. If caught or wounded, the little ones
escape rapidly in all directions ; but the mother is faithful to
her duties, and defends her progeny while life endures. It
hides under stones, losfs, d:c.
Habitat. Pennsylvania, North and South Carolina, etc.
4. LYCOSA RURICOLA.
Plate XVII. Fig. 5, 6.
Description. Pale or livid testaceous, cephalothorax with
black marks, two large ones at base ; cheliceres black with
yellow hair at base ; abdomen varied with black marks and
pale dots above, a large black spot underneath ; feet with
indistinct livid rings.
Observations. A male and a female of this species were
found with a white spot in the middle of the black one on the
venter, but as the marking differed somewhat from the above,
they may constitute a different species. They are always
found wandering on the ground.
Habitat. Carolina, Alabama. October, November.
5. LYCOSA SALTATRIX.
Plate XVII. Fig. 7.
Description. Piceous, cephalothorax with two darker lon-
gitudinal bands ; abdomen plumbeous or mouse colored, with
four dark points and a pale longitudinal line ; legs hairy, with
many dark bands. Male inclining to a rufous tinge.
Observations. This small spider, first found in South Caro-
lina, runs about on the ground, the female carrying her cocoon
attached to the hinder part of her abdomen. When deprived
of it, she remains near; and, if allowed, she grasps it in her
cheliceres and carries it oti. The cocoon, of a slate color, is
orbicular, and contains about fifteen eggs. This is probably
388 Hentz^s Descriptions of the
related to Aranea saccata of Europe. I have found in Ala-
bama a spider, which may not differ specifically from this,
which was larger and of a mouse color, with very indistinct
markings, except its legs, whicli agreed with the drawing ac-
companying this. Its cocoon, which it carried in the usual
way, was also of a bluish pale slate color, but it was lenticu-
lar, being composed of two concave plates of strong texture,
united loosely at the edge ; and it contained about sixty yel-
low eggs — notwithstanding the apparent difference, I refer it
to this species. It is probable, however, that future natural-
ists will define two or more species, which I may have con-
founded or referred to this description.
Habitat. The United States.
6. LYCOSA ERRATICA.
Plate XVII. Fig. 8.
Description. Brown or piceous ; cephalothorax with one
longitudinal blackish line each side ; abdomen witli a forked
longitudinal fascia and several spots black, a large black spot
underneath, sometimes a white spot surrounded with black ;
male the same.
Observations. This species, which becomes very large, I
formerly supposed to be a variety of L. lenta ; but it was
always found wandering and never in holes ; I therefore con-
sider it as perfectly distinct, having been often seen, generally
running in the grass.
Habitat. Massachusetts, Alabama.
7. LYCOSA LITORALIS.
Plate XVII. Fi£7. 9.
'a*
Description. Livid white ; cephalothorax varied with livid
gray markings ; abdomen with a pale waved fascia ; feet and
palpi with some hairs, and with pale gray rings on all joints,
4. iTy.'a. the 1st visibly longer than the 3d, the 3d full as long
if not longer than the 2d.
Araneides of the United States. 389
Observations. This distinct species is always found near
water under boards, leaves, stones, &c., moving chiefly by
jumps, when escaping. Often observed in the same localities.
Habitat. North Carolina. April.
8. LYCOSA MARITDIA.
Plate XYII. Fig. 10.
Description. Pale yellow, almost white ; cephalothorax with
faint indented lines ; abdomen with two longitudinal rows of
dots of a pale hue.
Observations. This spider was found on the beach of Bear
Island in the bay of St. Helena, South Carolina. Dr. Charles
Pickering sent me one from Salem, informing me that it is
'common in Massachusetts. It runs with great speed on the
sand still wet with the ebbing w^ater of the ocean.
Habitat. South Carolina, Massachusetts, and probably all
the Atlantic coast.
9. LYCOSA ASPERSA.
Plate XVII. Fig. 11, 12.
Description. Greenish obscure ; cephalothorax dark, ob-
scure, varied wath black marks and a few red lines about the
eyes ; cheliceres very large ; abdomen obscure, with small
black spots in three rows, varied with yellow and black in
wrinkles underneath, feet with black rings.
Observations. Though it is excessively difficult to distin-
guish betw^een species and varieties in this subgenus, yet I
must consider this as distinct from L. riparia. It was found
on a barren hill at a great distance from water.
Habitat. Alabama, September.
LYCOSA RIPARIA.
Plate XVII. Fig. 13—15.
Description. Brownish or greenish black ; cephalothorax
varied with blackish, with a narrowed yellowish line which
390 Hentz^s Descriptions of the
reaches the trophi ; abdomen above with triangular black
spots more or less interrupted, and a row on each side of
whitish dots more distinct towards the apex, a tuft of black
and of white hairs at base in both sexes ; beneath testaceous
or yellow, speckled with dots, and a line and two spots near
the base sometimes wanting, black ; feet with black or green-
ish brown rings. 4. T±~-a. In the male, the two rows of
white dots on the abdomen are arranged in the form of inter-
rupted lines, and the rings are obsolete on the feet, which are
long, slender and hairy.
Observations. This common spider is aquatic in its habits,
always found near or on water, and diving with ease under
the surface, when threatened or pursued.
Habitat. North Carolina, Alabama. All seasons.
11. LYCOSA PUNCTULATA.
Plate XVII. Fig. 16, 17.
Description. Pale rufous ; cephalothorax whitish or yel-
lowish, with four longitudinal blackish lines ; abdomen whitish
or yellowish, with a longitudinal band, blackish, whitish un-
derneath, with many black dots.
Observations. This spider captured at Germantown, was
communicated to me by Dr. diaries Pickering. It was found
also in Alabama, in November, agreeing in every respect with
the description. It was a male also. A female was found
September 28th agreeing with the design. The species is
therefore well established.
Habitat. Pennsylvania.
12. LYCOSA SCUTULATA.
Plate XVIII. Fig. 2.
Description. Testaceous ; cephalothorax with one longi-
tudinal band and one line on each side, blackish ; abdomen
with a longitudinal broad band, blackish, with about four
diagonal spots, and a narrow edge, each side of it yellowish ;
Araneides of the United States. 391
same color underneath, with very minute black dots on the
abdomen ; legs brownish with some blackish lines. Male
with the first pair of legs mostly black, and part of the fourth
pair also black underneath.
Observations. This common and very distinct species at-
tains a very large stature. It is most commonly found wan-
dering in quest of prey, and like Lycosa saltairix, carries
its cocoon attached to the abdomen behind. The cocoon is
very large, spherical and whitish, containing from one hundred
and fifty to two hundred eggs, which hatch before the cocoon
is opened. The yellow spots on the abdomen seem to be
wanting in the young. Habitat. Alabama.
13. LYCOSA SAGITTATA.
Plate XVIII. Fig. 3, 4.
Description. Yellowish brown ; cephalothorax with a pale
longitudinal band ; abdomen dusky also, with a pale band
with angular edges, whitish underneath, with minute black
dots and two curved black bands which join together at base
and at the apex where they spread out ; pulmonary region
brownish ; feet varied with blackish.
Observations. This species is distinct from any other. It
was found wandering, and seems to be rare.
Habitat. North Alabama. April. •
13. LYCOSA OCREATA.
Plate XVIII. Fig. 5.
Description. Obscure ; cephalothorax, with a broad, pale
longitudinal band, with a blackish edge ; abdomen blackish
at base, the black spreading each side, with a few black dots
each side towards the apex ; feet varied with brown or black-
ish ; antepenult joint of the first pair large, black and hairy,
the intermediate one and the thigh black at tip ; feet, 4. iTsn.
A male.
Observations. This species is not rare, in meadows, near
water. Habitat. North Carolina.
392 Hentz's Descriptions of the
14. LYCOSA VENUSTULA.
Plate XVIII. Fig. 6. 7.
'»•
Description. Cephalothorax yellowish, with two bands and
edge black ; abdomen piceous, paler in the middle towards
the base, with a row of abbreviated black lines approximating
towards the apex, pale gray underneath, with a row of minute
black dots each side approximating towards the apex ; feet,
rufous. A middle size species.
Observations, This spider is common on the ground, but
inasmuch as only males are found, it is likely it will ultimately
be referred to some other species ; which, I cannot tell.
Habitat, Alabama. April.
15. LYCOSA MILVINA.
Plate XVIII. Fig. 8.
Description. Pale yellowish ; cephalothorax varied with
brownish ; abdomen brownish with a scolloped band, widen-
ing towards the base, and two lateral spots yellowish, pale
yellowish spotless underneath ; feet varied with brownish,
hairy, particularly the third and fourth pair. A small species.
Observations. This is a very distinctly marked species,
which occurred only once.
Habitat. Alabama. September.
16. LYCOSA SAXATILIS.
Plate XVIII. Fig. 9, 10.
Description, Pale bluish ; cephalothorax varied with grey-
ish ; abdomen greyish or blackish, with pale bluish spots or
dots, pale grey underneath ; feet long and slender, hairy,
with many black rings. 4. aTiili. or 4. STaTi. A small species.
Observations. This slender little Lycosa is a very distinct
species. It runs with surprising agility and swiftness. It was
found in the mountains of North Alabama,
Habitat. Alabama. August.
Araneldes of the United States. 393
17. LYCOSA FUXEREA.
Plate XVIII. Fig. II.
Description. Cephalothorax blackish ; abdomen with four
approximate spots and four bent lines yellowish ; feet varied
with rufous and blackish. A small species.
Observations. This species abounds on the ground. It
has the habitus of a Herpyllus, and runs with great rapidity.
The male and the female were often found agreeing with the
description.
Habitat. Alabama. May.
Genus. Ctenus. Walck.
Characters. Cheliceres large, fangs moderately large ; max-
illae short, parallel, cut obliquely at tip ; lip about half the
length of the maxillce, pointed ; eyes eight, unequal, in three
roii's, two eyes of middle size form the lowest row, intermediate
row composed of four eyes, the two middle ones largest, the two
external ones smallest ; last row formed of two large eyes,
borne on tubercles and placed farther apart than those of the
middle row ; feet, fourth pair longest, then the first, then the
second, the third beins: shortest.
Habits. Arane'ides wandering for prey, making no web
for a dwelling.
Observations. This subgenus seems to be related to Lyco-
SA and DoLOMEDES.
1. CTENUS HYBERXALIS.
Plate XIX. Fig. 1—4.
Description. Deep rufous ; cephalothorax black above with
a longitudinal yellowish band ; abdomen black, with a ser-
rated longitudinal yellow band above, and with four diagonal
lines of minute yellow dots beneath.
Observations. This was found in a cavity in the ground in
the month of January.
Habitat. South Alabama.
43
394 Hentz's Descriptions of the
2. CTENUS PUNCTULATUS.
Plate XIX. Fia:. 5, 6.
'3'
Description, Yellowish rufous ; cephalothorax, with two
longitudinal blackish lines and two fainter scalloped ones on
each side ; abdomen wnth two subobsolete lines of minute
white dots, becoming more distinct towards the apex, where
may be seen a few irregularly placed white dots on the out-
side of the lines, same color unspotted beneath ; feet, a. i. ^Tl^
or 4. 1. 3. 2.
Observations. This spider was found at the foot of a tree
in a moist place near a mountain stream, running through a
forest.
Habitat. Alabama. August, September.
Genus. Dolomedes. Latr.
Characters. Cheliceres moderately large ; maxillcd short,
parallel, somewhat wider above the insertion of the palpi ; lip
short, suborbicnlar ; eyes eight, unequal, in two rows, the ante-
rior one slightly curved, the posterior one wider and much curved
from the base towards the anterior one ; exterior eyes borne on
tubercles ; feet, the fourth, second, and first pair are nearly
equal, the third being the shortest.
Habits. Araneides wandering after prey, making no web,
except during the rearing of the progeny, hiding under stones,
sometimes diving under water ; cocoon usually orbicular, car-
ried by the mother.
Observations. The subgenus Dolomedes is the link be-
tween Ctemnus and Lycos a, and its characters are somewhat
variable. In the first tribe, (the AnBOREiE) which differ wholly
from the Sylvaria of VValckenaer, the arrangement of the eyes
is almost that of Lycosa ; and in the Ripuaria, the arrange-
ment of the eyes leads to Micrommata. The spiders of this
genus differ in their habits also ; those of the two first tribes
dwell on trees, or in cavities ; those of the third are found
near water, and run on its surface with great rapidity ; they
can even dive, and have recourse to this when in danger.
Araneides of the United States.- 395
Several, perhaps all species, construct on bushes a web some-
what like that of Agelena, for the protection of the cocoon,
and the rearing of the young. This is another resemblance
to MiCROMMATA.
Order of the species Dolomedes.
Tribe 1. AnBOREiE, middle eyes much larger than the rest.
Tribe II. TENEBROSiE, eyes suhequal, lower row as much
curved as the upper.
Tribe III. Ripuaria, eyes suhequal, lower row straight or
slightly curved.
(ArborecE.) 1. DOLEMEDES TENAX.
Plate XIX. Fig. 7.
Description. Grayish ; cephalothorax edged with black,
varied with blackish on the disk ; abdomen also edged with
black near the base, varied longitudinally, with blackish on iFie
disk, about three whitish dots on each side near the apex,
pale beneath, with two obscure longitudinal lines ; feet, with
blackish bands above, pale beneath. CaTl. 3. Never large.
Observations. This distinct species is always found on up-
right sticks, small trees, &c. turning round to avoid an attack
in the same manner as Oxyopes scalaris, which it resembles
so much that for a time I could not distinguish one from the
other. It spreads its feet like Tho3iisus. The form of its
cephalothorax is peculiar, the head being elevated and well-
defined from the thorax. It must not be taken for the young
of D. tenebrosus, which resembles the old, and dwells in dark
places, whereas this is quite a diurnal species, fond of broad
dayhght.
Habitat. North Carolina.
2. DOLOMEDES HASTULATUS.
Plate XVIII. Fig. 9.
Description. Pale or greenish gray ; ceplialothorax varied
with blackish ; abdomen with a blackish band, with rounded
396 Araneides of the United States.
edges near the base, and terminating with a hastate point to-
wards the apex ; feet varied with gray or blackish. ^7^.1. 3.
Observations. This was found in September in a web, Uke
that of Angelena. This can be readily distinguished from
D. tenax, particularly by the form of its cephalothorax, in
which the head is not elevated as in that species. The second
pair of legs being sensibly the longest. This species could
almost be referred to Micrommata. It was found in March
upon the stump of a tree not far from a stream.
Habitat. Alabama. September.
(Tenebrosse.) 3. DOLOMEDES TENEBROSUS.
Plate XIX. Fig. 10, 13.
Description. Livid brown ; abdomen and cephalothorax
varied with blackish angular markings ; feet annulated with
blackish ; frequently measuring over four inches from the ex-
tremity of the first pair of legs to that of the fourth pair; male
with legs 1. 2. 4. 3.
Observations. This spider, one of the largest of the whole
family, is very common in dark, retired places, hiding in cre-
vices during the day, and issuing at night from its retreat
for the purpose of seeking for prey. It does not seek the
vicinity of water near which it was never seen, but dwells
generally in elevated dry places. The female does not make
a web, but carries its cocoon, grasped with her cheliceres.
The cocoon is orbicular whitish, and of the size of a common
cherry. I have occasionally seen this Dolomedes in the day-
time, but it seemed always inactive, and easily captured. It
can be readily distinguished from D. albineus, by its having
no yellowish spot under the abdomen, and by the white hairs
on its legs.
Habitat. Carolina, Alabama, Massachusetts ?
Harris's Description of an Africa7i Beetle. 397
ART. XXXTI. — DESCRIPTION OF AN AFRICAN BEETLE, ALLIED
TO SCARAB-EUS POLYPHEMUS, WITH REMARKS UPON SOME
OTHER INSECTS OP THE SA^IE GROUP. Bv Thaddeus Wxlliaai
Harris.
In the year 1781, the Danish naturalist Fabricius pubHshed
the first description of a large African beetle, preserved in the
cabinet of Sir Joseph Banks in London, and gave it the name
of Scarahceus Polyphemus. Olivier afterwards found this in-
sect in the same collection, and described and figured it, as a
species of Cetonia, in 1789. The specimen was a male : it
remained without a mate, and, according to Mr. Hope* and
Mr. Macleay.f it was the only one known for many years,
and was long considered as '' the chief ornament of the Bank-
sian cabinet," from which, however, it disappeared a few
years ago. In the " Monographic des Cetoines" of Gory and
Percheron, which was published at Paris in 1833, there ap-
peared a description and figure of a male of the same species,
which these authors state was contained in their own cabinet ;
but we have no authentic account of any other specimen in
European collections.
Dr. Thomas S. Savage has lately brought from Cape Pal-
mas, in Western Africa, several males and the female of this
rare and noble species, together with both sexes of another,
which is scarcely inferior to it in size and beauty, and, hav-
ing put them into my hands, has requested me to describe
them.
As we are indebted to Dr. Savage for the first discovery of
the female of the Polyphemus, which was before unknown, it
may be proper to offer for publication a description of this
insect, with that of the new species which now enriches his
admirable collection.
The Boston Society of Natural History has received from
the same gentleman a large number of the fine insects of
Western Africa, among which are males and females of Scara-
* Coleopterisl's Manual, p. 60.
t Illustrations of the Annulosa of South Africa, p. 33,
398 Harris's Description of
hceus torquata and micans of Drury, together with both sexes
of the gigantic beetle called Goliathus Cocicus by Gory and
Percheron,* but differing from the true Cacicus of Voet, in
having a triangular black patch on the shoulder of each
elytron. The cabinet of the Essex County Natural History
Society, at Salenij contains these same species, together with
a male and female of Goliathus or Hegemon Drurii, and other
valuable insects, mostly brought, by Mr. George A. Perkins
from Western Africa.
The writer of this article has enjoyed the rare opportunity
of seeing all the Goliath beetles in these cabinets, as well as
those in the private collections of Dr. Savage and Mr. Perkins.
On this account, and not from any ambition to connect his
own name with the description of a new foreign species, he
has been induced to yield to the request of Dr. Savage in
drawing up the characters of the Polyphemus and of the new
species allied to it, and has ventured to prefix to them some
observations on the remarkable group to which these insects
belong.
Lamarck instituted the genus Goliath, or Goliathus, as it is
now generally denominated, in the year 1801, for the recep-
tion of ScarahcBUs Goliatus, Cacicus, Polyphemus, and some
other species.
Most of the insects included in this genus are large, and
some of them are of gigantic proportions, and are much prized
for their beauty and extreme rarity. The clypeus of the males
is generally forked or armed with horns. The mentum is
wide, deeply notched, and divided into lobes, and the origin
of the labial palpi is concealed within a deep sinuated furrow
in the outer edge of each lateral lobe. In the African species,
the maxillae are horny, and are furnished with teeth and a
terminal brush or pencil of hairs ; the mandibles end with a
thin and horny lobe ; the epimera or frusta are more or less
conspicuous between the outer angles of the thorax and the
shoulders of the elytra, and the latter are dilated and promi-
* It is surprising that these authors and subsequent writers have not noticed the
ditference between Voet's species and this insect.
an African Beetle. 399
nent ; the mesosternum is wide, thick, and subacute, but is
not much produced anteriorly ; and supplementary claws and
claw-joints (pseudonychia and plantula?) are found between
the nails of all the feet.
Mr. Macleay, in the •'• Illustrations of the Annulosa of
South Africa," has referred some of the species to his genus
Coryphe (Gnathocera of Gory and Percheron), and has dis-
tributed the others into several sections ; and Mr. Hope*
has reduced them to smaller gi'oups, which may be called
subofenera.
In a paper upon some of these African beetles, which was
published in June 1839, in the " Journal of the Essex County
Natural History Society," the name of Hegemon was proposed
for the subgenus including the princely ScarahcBus Goliatusf
of Linnaeus, together with the still more magnificent Goliathus
Drurii of Westwood, and the Cacicus of Gory and Percheron,
and also the females of the two latter, bearing the titles
of regiusi and princeps.^ Should this generical name be
adopted, it will enable us to restore to the Linna^an species
the specific name of which Lamarck and other naturalists
have deprived it.
The subgenus Hes^emon may be distinguished by the fol-
lowing characters. Clypeus of the male armed in the middle
of its anterior edge with a short, recurved, forked horn, the
diverging branches of which are broad, thin, and obtuse ;
and on each side of the head, above the antennae, a broad
and thin toothlike projection, truncated at the summit. La-
brum wide, thin but horny, entire or rounded before, and
entirely concealed. Mentum widest before the middle, di-
vided into four lobes by a rounded emargination of the an-
* " Coleopterist's Manual," p. 116.
t Linnaeus and Drury did not use the letter h in this name. It is to be regretted
that Mr. Macleay, who is justly styled the prince of modem entomologists, has ir*
terchanged the names of this and the following species, in his " Illustrations,"
giving to the Goliatus the name o[ Drurii, and to the latter that of Goliathus. By
consulting Mr. Westwood's valuable edition of Drury's " Illustrations of Exotic
Entomolog}-," he would have avoided this mistake.
t Described by Professor Klug in Erman's '* Reise."
§ Described by Mr. Hope in the " Manual."
400 Harrises Description of
terior edge, and a deep sinus of the margin on each side,
within which the labial palpi are inserted and nearly con-
cealed. Maxillae horny, the inner lobe very hairy, and armed
at the tip with a small tooth ; the terminal lobe not articu-
lated at right angles with the base, but curved inwards beyond
the middle, where it is armed with a sharp tooth, and tapering
at the end, which is furnished externally with a long and thick
pencil of tawny hairs.* Thorax orbicular or rounded behind ;
in the females indented before the middle, and elevated into
a tubercle on the anterior edge. Epimera large and con-
spicuous above, between the outer angles of the thorax and
the shoulders of the elytra. Body robust ; back convex ;
elytra gibbous behind. Abdomen not indented or furrowed
beneath, in either sex ; the extremity densely fringed with
hairs, and immaculate. Forelegs of the males elongated ;
anterior tibiae unarmed, but covered with minute asperities on
the inner side, and furnished with a downy pad beneath the
base ; three-toothed externally in the females. Claw-joints
and claws of the forefeet very strong and robust in the males.
Four posterior tibiae fringed internally with hairs in both
sexes, and armed with a spine on the middle of the outer
edcre in the females.
The subgenera, named Dicronorhina and Mecynorhina by
Mr. Hope, are found in Western Africa. They differ from
the foregoing in the form of the thorax, which is trapezoidal,
or broad behind and narrowed before ; moreover, the body is
not so robust and convex ; the shoulders of the elytra are not
so prominent ; and the epimera are not so large and conspic-
uous as in the subgenus Hegemon. In the males, the clypeus
is horned, the forelegs are the longest, and always differ from
those of the other sex, the claw-joints and claws of the fore-
feet are very strong and robust, and the middle of the abdo-
men is concave or furrowed beneath.
Scarahccus micans of Drury, Goliathus sphndens and Smithii
* The trophi are correctly figured in Mr. Hope's "Manual," plate TIT., excepting
the maxillfe, in which the articulation of the terminal lobe with the base is not
shown.
an African Beetle. 401
of Macleay, G. GraUii and Daphnis of Buquet, Cetonia quad-
rimaculata of Olivier, and some other species, belong to the
genus Dicronorhina. These splendid beetles are highly pol-
ished, and have almost the lustre of glass. In the males, the
anterior edge of the square clypeus is produced, and ends
with a short recurved horn, which is bifid, or suddenly dilated
at the summit, in the form of the letter T ; the top of the
head is concave, with a sharp semicircular ridge overhanging
the middle ; the lateral angles of the clypeus are prominent,
and more or less elevated. The mesosternum is longer and
more acute than in Hegemon and Mecynorhina. The hind-
most tibiae, alone, are slightly fringed with hairs on the inner
side of the base. The anterior and intermediate tibiae are
not toothed or spined externally, in the males, and the former
have several very small denticulations, which are often obso-
lete, on the inner side. The forelegs of the female are three
toothed externally, and the four hinder tibiae are armed with
a single spine on the middle of the outer edge. The extrem-
ity of the abdomen is immaculate. By these characters alone
this subgenus may be distinguished easily from the following
one, and it approaches more nearly to the genus Coryphe of
Macleay.
Scarabaus Polyphemus is the type of Mecynorhina, which
will also include the new West African species discovered by
Dr. Savage. The torquata* of Drury, the male of which was
first described and figured by Mr. Waterhouse,f in the year
1838, should be referred to the same subgenus. The opaque
and velvety substance, that covers the thorax and elytra,
the two whitish spots on the extremity (podex or pygidium)
of the abdomen, with the long-horned clypeus of the males,
give a peculiar aspect to these large and beautiful beetles.
The head is quadrate, and more or less concave above, the
semicircular concavity extending backwards to the edge of
the thorax, in the males. In this sex the anterior margin of
* This is Dairy's orthography ; the name is usually \iTitten torquaixis by other
entomologists.
t In Charlesworth's " Magazine of Natural History," Vol. II. p. 635.
44
402 Harris's Description of
the clypeus is produced in the form of a very long horn, and
the elevated ridges on each side, above the antennae, are also
more or less produced and hornlike. Body more convex than
in Dicronorhina, opaque and velvety above, and more or
less covered with the same opaque substance on the breast.
Thorax narrowed before and broad behind, with three shallow
emarginations on the hinder edge. Scutel triangular. Elytra
gibbous behind, and terminating in a spine at the sutural an-
gle. Middle of the abdomen concave in the males. Podex
marked with two large whitish square spots, and fringed with
tawny hairs. Mandibles concealed, and ending with a thin
horny lobe. Maxillae horny, exposed at base only ; the inner
lobe very hairy, and armed with a minute tooth at the ex-
tremity ; the terminal lobe slender and acute, not toothed in
the middle, bearing on its outer side a thick brush of tawny
hairs, and articulated to the back of the maxillae nearly at a
right angle. Mentum broadest behind the middle, four-lobed
anteriorly ; the middle lobes separated by an angular notch ;
the lateral lobes, as in the genus Hegemon, less prominent,
and separated from those between them by a deep sinus in
the margin on each side, designed for the reception of the
palpi. Anterior tibiae three-toothed externally ; the teeth very
irregular and unequal in the males, and in this sex the inner
side of these tibiae is armed with three or more teeth also.
There are two spines on the middle of the intermediate tibiae
and one spine on the posterior tibiae, in the females ; but
these spines are generally obsolete or wanting in the males.
The hindmost tibiae alone are fringed with hairs, but the
fringe extends along the whole of the inner edge.
1. MECYNORHTNA POLYPHEMUS.
Opaque velvet-green above ; top of the head, five longitu-
dinal stripes on the thorax, three rows of rounded spots on
each elytron, a spot on the scutel, two large square spots on
the podex, and the sides of the breast, pale buff-colored ; mar-
gin of the clypeus, horns, antennae, and tarsi black.
Male, Head three-horned ; the anterior horn curved up-
an African Beetle. 403
wards, forked and denticulated at the end ; the lateral horns
elevated perpendicularly, compressed and denticulated. In-
termediate stripe on the thorax abbreviated behind. Anterior
femora six-toothed internally, and notched at the base. Body
beneath, except the sternum and abdomen, covered with a
yellowish velvet-like pile. Length, exclusive of the horns,
2| inches ; central horn | inch, or more.
Female. Clypeus narrowed before, and widely emargin-
ated on the anterior edge. Thorax grossly punctured ; the
intermediate vitta obsolete. Body beneath entirely green,
polished, grossly punctured, and scantily clothed with tawny
hairs. Length l2| inches. (PI. xxi. figs. 5-1 L)
2. MECYNORHINA. SAVAGII.
Thorax opaque velvet-green above, with five broad yellow-
ish stripes ; scutel green, with a broad yellowish stripe in the
middle ; elytra velvet-black, with three rows of tawny spots on
each elytron, and an indented stripe of the same color on the
suture, the marginal and subsutural spots confluent from the
base to the middle ; head of the male and central horn above,
two spots on the vertex of the female, two square spots on
the podex, and sides of the breast, yellowish gray ; sternum,
abdomen, and legs, dark green and polished ; horns and mar-
gin of the clypeus, anterior and intermediate tarsi, black ;
posterior tarsi pale rufous, with the articulations and claws
black.
Male. Head three-horned ; the anterior horn horizontally
extended, and forked at the end ; lateral horns smooth and
tapering, extended forwards and outwards ; anterior femora
with three unequal robust teeth on each side, those on the
outer edge abruptly bent downwards. Length, nearly 2
inches ; horn more than I inch.
Female. Clypeus quadrate, truncated before ; sides of the
breast covered with a yellowish gray substance, intermixed
with coarse hairs. Length 1^ inch. (PI. xxi. figs. 1-4.)
It is possible that the species belonging to Sir William J.
Hooker, and referred to by Mr. Hope and Mr. Macleay, may
be identical with M. Savas^ii-
404 Harris's Description of
Dr. Savage informs me, that these two species of Mecy-
norhina feed upon a vine that climbs upon very lofty trees,
and states that " they wound the bark of the vine and ex-
tract the juice. The vine is full of a fluid as tasteless and
limpid as water ; and the natives, when travelling in the
woods, cut it off and drink the juice, when no water can be
easily obtained." He collected two females of each of these
species, and several males.
From his interesting manuscript notes it appears that the
Goliathi of Western Africa inhabit various trees, and that
different species have a predilection for different kinds of
trees. In a letter to Mr. Hope, published by Mr. Westwood,
in his Arcana Entomologica, Dr. S. says, " As to Goliathus
Cacicus, these regions abound with them ; and, after a year's
watching, I have obtained the flower, and know, botanically,
the tree from which they derive their food. It is a syngene-
sious plant, belonging to Jussieu's Compositae Corymbiferae.
The Cacicus inhabits no other tree, as it is said. The Mecy-
norhina iorquaia inhabits two kinds of trees, one a magnificent
Mimosa, a Goliath of its kind ; I have not yet obtained the
blossom, it is now in seed, which I have. The Goliathus
Drurii is not found in the locality of Cape Palmas ; it has
been taken at Bassa, near Montserado, and at Cape Coast. I
lately saw Professor King's regius, which is no more nor less
than the female of Drurii. Of this I am as certain as that
the princeps of Hope is the female of Cacicus. The Gold
Coast would seem to be the locality of Drurii, and the Grain
Coast of that of the torquatus and Cacicus.^^*
The males are much more numerous than the females.
The black-shouldered Cacicus abounds on the Grain and
Ivory Coasts, and many specimens have been procured at
Cape Palmas. When in good condition, the black patch is
always more or less conspicuous on the shoulder of each ely-
tron in this species, and is never replaced by the pearly white
* This extract was furnished by Dr. Savage himself; who has informed me, since
this article was sent to press, that Mr. Westwood's " Arcana " contains a figure of
the female Polyphemus, with an account of all the known Goliathi. Unfortunately
the information came too late to be of any use at this time.
an African Beetle. 405
color which appears on that part in Voet's figure and descrip-
tion. Hence it still remains uncertain whether Voet's Caci-
cus ingens be a distinct species, or merely an accidental vari-
ety of the black-shouldered species. The latter inhabits a
tree that grows to the height of thirty or forty feet, with a
diameter of six or eight inches, and can be taken in great
numbers during the months of December, January, and Feb-
ruary, when the tree renews its blossoms and leaves. The
insects are roasted and eaten by the natives, who say " they
are very fat and sweet." Dr. Savage thinks that the Gold
Coast, or rather the interior of Guinea, will be found to be
the proper locality for Hegemon Drurii. It is probable that
Hegemon Goliatus may be obtained nearer the line, and par-
ticularly back of the Gaboon. Mecynorhina torquata is found
at Cape Palmas, where many have been obtained within a
few years. The tree upon which they live is supposed to be
a species of Acacia by Dr. Savage. Dicronorhina micans has
been taken at Cape Palmas also, but seems to be rare on that
part of the coast.
It appears, from the observations of Dr. Savage, that the
food of the Goliath beetles is fluid, like that of the Trichii
and Cetonice, insects belonging to the same natural family ;
but the latter live chiefly on the nectar of flowers, and
the former on the sap of plants. The long brushes on
their jaws, and the diverging rows of hairs that line their
lower lips, are admirably fitted for absorbing liquid food ;
while their horny teeth aflbrd these beetles additional means
for obtaining it, from the leaves and juicy stems of plants,
when the blossoms have disappeared. Thus every new dis-
covery in natural history, even when least expected, serves to
increase the evidence of skilful contrivance and perfect adap-
tation of structure in all organized beings.
DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES ON PLATE XXI.
1. Mecvnorhina Savagii, ,J . 6. The same, seen from above.
2. Head of ihe same, in profile. 7. The same, seen from behind.
3. Clypeus of the female. 8. Anterior tibia of M. Polyphemus, ^ .
4. Anterior tibia of the same. 9. Clypeus of the female.
5. Head of M.Polyphemus, (J, in 10. Maxilla; and,
profile. 11. Menlum, of the male, enlarged.
406 Importance of Habit as a Guide to
ART. XXXIII. — ON THE IMPORTANCE OF HABIT AS A GUIDE TO
ACCURACY IN SYSTEMATICAL ARRANGEMENT, ILLUSTRATED
IN THE INSTANCE OF THE SYLVIA PETECHIA OF WILSON,
AND ALL SUBSEQUENT WRITERS. By Thomas McCulloch, Jr., of
Halifax, Nova Scotia, Corresponding Member of the Wernerian Society of Edin-
burgh.
'o'
Few things, perhaps, have a greater tendency to faciHtate
the attainment of any branch of knowledge, than accuracy of
arrangement. In numerous instances, however, this is a mat-
ter of exceeding difficulty, more especially, in those sciences
which have reference to organized objects. There, species
belonging to different families, often approximate so closely,
that it is almost impossible to ascertain their true position, if
directed alone by external development. Unfortunately for
the progress of science, this has been too frequently the only
guide, and to this circumstance may justly be attributed the
numerous and serious mistakes which have been committed,
even by very accomplished systematists. Many of these errors,
doubtless, might have been avoided by attention to internal
structure, and until arrangement, in certain departments of
science be based upon this, as well as upon external develop-
ment, implicit confidence can never be placed in its conclu-
sions. For investigations of this kind, however, there is re-
quisite, not only a certain degree of manual dexterity, but also
an amount of knowledge both diversified and extensive ; and
for the attainment of this, few persons possess either the
time or inclination which is necessary. In the absence of
these important qualifications, careful attention to habit will
be found to form no mean substitute, for habit, in numerous
instances, is an infallible index of internal arrangement. It is
true, that even in habit, aberrations occur occasionally, where
it might be difficult if not impossible to trace correspondence
in structure, as in the extraordinary fly-catching propensities
of the Picus varius, yet, in general, thorough acquaintance with
habit will be found to contribute most materially to accuracy
of conclusion. This branch of knowledge is not as""yet suffi-
ciently appreciated, though to it, doubtless, we are indebted
Accuracy in Systematical Arrangement. 407
for many of the judicious alterations which have been more
recently introduced into different departments of science. Of
its importance, particularly with respect to the subject men-
tioned at the commencement of this paper, the following no-
tices of Sylvia petechia, I trust, will afford a very striking
illustration.
Differing from the true SyhicolcE in external development,
less, perhaps, than some species of that genus do from each
other, the bird just mentioned, has been passed unquestioned
by every systematic writer with whom I am acquainted. In
reality, however, it has no more claim to the position to
which it has been invariably assigned, than any of the species
which have been judiciously removed from this family. The
Sylvia petechia properly belongs to the small genus Seiurus of
Swainson. The characteristics of this genus are chiefly indi-
cated by habit, and these, by the bird abovementioned, are
exhibited just as forcibly, as by either of its congeners. But
before adducing the evidence upon which this opinion is
founded, it may be observed that in our fauna, this genus
contains at present only two acknowledged species; it is,
however, probable, that this number will yet be augmented,
when the very material differences existing between the Seiu-
rus Noveboracensis of the south and north shall have been
fully ascertained.
It is well known that the true Syhicolce do not build upon
the ground, nor do they resort there, except from necessity.
This appears to occur so seldom, that in this situation, I have
never noticed but one species — the Sylvia coronata. In
spring, the Sylvia petechia and the warbler previously men-
tioned, arrive simultaneously in Nova Scotia. Subsequently,
however, intervals of cold weather often intervene — the sur-
face of the soil becomes frozen, insect life is retarded, and
both the species abovementioned are forced to mingle with
the robins and other birds while seeking food upon the accu-
mulations of seawrack, upon sahflats, or along the margins of
pools or streams. In situations of this kind, the movements
of the Sylvia coronata and Sylvia petechia present a most
408 Importance of Habit as a Guide to
striking contrast. The awkward, helpless motions of the
former, instantly betray its utter inadaptation to such circum-
stances ; but the latter hops about with the utmost ease, and
often exhibits much greater rapidity of movement than I have
ever noticed either the Seiurus aurocapillus or S. noveboracensis
exemplify. The Sylvia petechia does not resort to the ground
from necessity, for this, during its migrations in spring, is one
of its most common habits. During the period just men-
tioned, I have frequently noticed it in the vicinity of Pictou,
tripping about the little pools which occur in unbroken pas-
ture land. Nor is it merely in search of food that this spe-
cies resorts to the ground — they actually pair there, and
though 1 have not succeeded in obtaining a nest, I am satis-
fied that that is the situation in which they build.
I have never seen the Sylvia petechia at Pictou during the
period of incubation ; but at St. Mary's, upon the southern
coast of Nova Scotia, it surprised me not a little to find it
pretty common in certain localities throughout the summer.
In the vicinity last mentioned, 1 once enjoyed an excellent
opportunity of observing the pairing of a considerable number
of these birds, and the manner in which they adjusted the
universally interesting preliminaries of this important con-
nection, was no less singular than amusing. Near the village
of Sherbrooke, there was a perpendicular cliff which con-
tained a little sunny nook, partially refilled by fallen blocks.
In this spot, at least twenty pair of the Sylvia petechia had
assembled, and when first noticed, they were busily pursuing
each other over or under the fallen blocks, or through the
smallest lateral chink which admitted of a passage. These
little manoeuvres were performed in silence, but in perfect
good fellowship. The males never evinced the least disposi-
tion to interfere with each other, but each constantly pursued
the female which he had selected through all the windings of
this curious courtship. The females usually kept a foot or
two in advance of the males, and at times, it was really
laughable to witness the weary, tortuous, and apparently ca-
pricious routes by which they led their patient followers. At
Accuracy in Systematical Arrangement. 409
one minute, a female might be observed tripping over some
huge block, and at the next, diving into some crevice beneath
it or one adjoining, and from the period which often elapsed
ere she and her attendant reappeared, I sometimes feared
that they had become inextricably involved. The fem.ales, I
imagine, always managed to find some outlet, and not unfre-
quently at a very considerable distance from the spot at which
they had entered. I am not aware that the Sylvia petechia
habitually pairs in such numbers ; the assemblage just noticed
might, therefore, have been in some measure accidental. At
the time in which it was noticed, one of tliose cold intervals
previously mentioned occurred, and large numbers both of tlie
Sylvia petechia and iS*. coronata were congregated with robins,
blackbirds, and other species upon an adjoining salt-Hat.
Thougli thus pairing together in such numbers, the Sylvia
petechia breeds apart, and the localities which it seems to prefer
for this purpose, are moist, mossy barrens or swamps, sprinkled
with alder or stunted spruce trees. From the tops of the
latter they usually emit their simple but feeble notes. These
can scarcely be entitled to the name of sonsr, for if uttered in
a somewhat softer tone, they might readily be attributed to
the common grasshopper. As the pairing of the Sylvia pete-
chia occurs early in May, it is probable that two broods are
raised during the season.
It might be supposed that the caudal vibrations, constantly
exhibited by this bird, would have awakened some suspicion
with respect to its present position. I am not aware, how-
ever, of anything of the kind having ever been expressed,
even by tliose writers who have had the most favorable oppor-
tunities for observing its habits. There is one circumstance,
connected with the habits of this bird, wliich is exceedingly
curious. In spring, as I have already mentioned, it resorts
freely to the ground, but in no instance have I ever observed
it there during its autumnal migrations. During this period
it seems to exhibit the habits of the true Sylvicolte, gleaning
among the branches of trees, and not unfrequently visiting the
windows of dwellings, in search of spiders and insects. This
45
410 On the Anatomy of
may appear scarcely credible, yet, I have noticed, in other
species of birds, during the breeding season, a temporary as-
sumption of habits much more incongruous and unaccounta-
ble than the one abovementioned.
Alterations, such as have just been suggested, even when
based upon incontrovertible evidence, are attended, I am
aware, with serious inconveniences. Independently of an ac-
cumulation of synonymes, from which the student turns away
in disgust, persons who have discovered, accurately described,
and, probably, with no little toil, obtained almost all the infor-
mation which science possesses of certain species, are thus
liable to be deprived, in a great measure, of the credit justly
due them, by some other person, whose sole claim to notice
may consist in the mere rectification of some error respecting
the position of the objects.
The preceding information has not been communicated
from any desire of connecting a name with a species which
has been long, though very imperfectly, known ; but from a
sense of the importance of accuracy of arrangement. Let the
real position of the bird be acknowledged, and the person, by
whom the alteration has been suggested, will be perfectly sat-
isfied, though his name should never be mentioned in connec-
tion with the species. Those who love science, for its own
sake, will feel but little regret, provided its progress be ac-
celerated, should their claims to notice be occasionally over-
looked, even in cases which are really of importance.
ART. XXXIV. — ON THE ANATOMY OF TEBEXXOPHORUS CARO-
LINEXSIS. By Jeffries Wyman, M. D.
(Communicated November 15, 1S43.)
The peculiar characters of the most common slug of our
forests, which was noticed by Bosc under the name of Limax
Carolinensis, induced Dr. Binney, in his memoir on the
v.
Tehcnnophoms Carolinensis. 411
LhnacklcB of the United States,* to propose for it a new
genus under the designation of Tebennophorus. For the
external characters of the animal, which is the subject of this
paper, reference is made to Dr. Binney's description, and
accurate figures of it may be found in his forth-coming volume
on the terrestrial Mollusks. The object of this paper is to
elucidate its anatomy, with a view of determining how far its
structure differs from that of the other jrenera of the faniilv.
The dorsal shield or cuirass, excepting as regards its size,
in its external characters resembles that of the different
species of Limctx. On making a longitudinal incision, how-
ever, along the middle of the back, as in PL xxii. fig. 1, there
is found to exist, between it and the viscera, a large cavity,
occupying the whole extent of the dorsal and lateral regions
this cavity has no communication with the respiratory sack
no air passing into it when the latter was forcibly distended.
It did not communicate externally with the air, being pro-
tected from it at all parts by the shield, except under the
anterior extremity of the latter, where it was covered only
by a thin membrane. The whole of its internal surface is
lined by a thin, smooth, delicate membrane enveloping the
viscera, so as to unite them into a single mass, and from them
it is reflected upon the tegumentary parietes, like the peri-
toneum of the higher animals. In the different species of the
genus Limax the membrane, by which the different viscera
are invested, is attached by a loose cellular tissue to the pari-
etes, so that no similar cavity can be said to exist. In Teben-
nophorus no cavity exists in the cuirass similar to that contain-
ing the calcareous body in the Limnces.
The different organs are represented, in fig. 1, as they
appear when exposed by laying open the cavity which has
just been described. At the anterior extremity is seen the
buccal pouch, from the centre of which commences the oeso-
phagus, and on each side the upper tentacles : a, is the respira-
tory sack ; b, a part of the viscera ; c c, the liver ; d, testis ;
//, integuments.
* See the present volume of this Joiirnal, page 163.
412 On the Anaioiny of
Organs of Nutrition. The mouth, as in the genera
Limax and Helix, consists of an ovoidal, hollow, muscular
organ. On its inner and upper surface, near its orifice, it is
provided with a horny beak, concave on its cutting edge, and
slightly denticulated. The tongue is a firm, apparently carti-
laginous organ, which, when retracted, occupies the lower
portion of the cavity of the mouth, also forming a process
which projects from its posterior face (^fig. 3, h.) The upper
surface of the tongue is deeply concave, and its lower convex,
SO that it has somewhat the form of a gouge, and it is covered
by a cuticular membrane, which is easily detached from the
body of the organ. When this cuticular covering is examined
under a powerful microscope, its entire surface is found to be
covered v/ith an immense number of minute teeth, arranged
in a transverse-linear series, and having a form more or less
conical. These on the median line (fig. 4, a,) are readily
distinguished from the lateral teeth, by their sj-njmetrical form,
and by being smaller than those nearest to them on either
side. The lateral teeth (fig. 4, h h and c c.) are all more or
less inclined towards the axis of the tongue. Those near the
median line, have an obtusely conical form, and at the apex
are surmounted by a sharper conical point. As they recede
from the centre, this point disappears, and the teeth become
regular cones, and at the same time gradually diminish in
size, the extreme lateral ones being reduced to minute
papillae, (fig. 4, cc.) The mouth is protruded and retracted
by two sets of muscular fibres acting in opposite directions,
and attached to the anterior and posterior part of the foot.
The ceso2)hagus opens into the mouth on its upper surface,
(fig. 3, c,) and on each side of it are the terminations of the
ducts of the salivary glands. These last are two in number,
one on each side of the oesophagus, of an irregular flattened
oval form, lobulated, each discharging its secretion into the
mouth by a single tortuous duct, (fig. 2, h,) which passes
through tlie ring formed by the union of the oesophageal
ganglia. The oesophagus, having passed through the same
ring, terminates posteriorly, (fig. 2, c.) in a thin membranous
stomach. This last is of a nearly cylindrical form, gradually
Tchennoj)horns CaroUnensis. 413
diminishing in size posteriorly (^fig. 2, d,) and terminating in a
very short cul de sac, as shown in fig. 5. The intestine
(fig. 5, 6, and fig. '^,ff,) wliich is at once distinguished from
the stomach by its smaller size, and by coming oflT obliquely
from the former near its termination, makes two or three
turns throu<zh the substance of the liver and terminates in the
anal orifice, at the entrance to the respiratory sack. The
liver (fig. 2, e e,) has the same relative size as in the Limaces,
forms the posterior portion of the visceral mass, and envel-
opes a large portion of the intestinal canal. It consists of
two lobes of nearly equal size, each composed of numerous
lobules. The biliary secretion is discharged into the stomach
near its posterior extremity, by a single duct from each of the
principal lobes, (fig. 5, c c.)
The respiratory cavity presents a very remarkable variation
from that of the Limaces, in being attached to the viscera,
and in having no connection whatever with the shield. In
the Limaces the shield contains two cavities, one of which
secretes and contains the calcareous body or rudimentary shell,
and the other the organ of respiration, the heart, and kidneys.
In dissecting the Limaces these two cavities are always
raised with the integuments, and the respiratory sack is only
attached to the viscera by the different vessels going from and
coming to it. The position of the respiratory organ in the
animal here described is shown (fig. 1, a,) as it appears
when inflated after removing the shield. The respiratory
orifice is seen in a cleft on the edjze of the dorsal shield, near
its anterior extremity on the right side. The cavity itself
consists (fig. 1, a,) of an exceedingly thin delicate, transparent
membrane, is of an irregular triangular shape, and terminates
posteriorly, on the left side of the visceral mass in a cul de
sac. In the concavity of the posterior edge of this sack, are
contained the pericardium, with the heart and kidney. As in
Limaces and Helices, the heart consists of an auricle and
ventricle, the former receiving the circulating fluid from the
organs of respiration, and the latter distributing it over the
body. The blood-vessels are thin and transparent and not
easily traced.
414 Oil the Anatomy of
The kidney is situated just behind the heart, is of elonga-
ted forni; curved upon itself so as to form nearly a complete
circle, leaving an open space in the centre, which is partly
occupied by the heart.
Nervous System. This system closely resembles that of
the Helices and Limaces ; its central portion consisting of a
ganglionic ring, through which passes the oesophagus, salivary
ducts, and some of the retractor muscles of the mouth. Fig.
6 represents the ganglia and nerves as seen when viewed on
the posterior face. Above, the ring consists of two ganglia,
from a process at the outer angles of which the nerves to the
upper tentacles are given off. (fig. 6, a.) The pair of nerves
going to the lower tentacles, and numerous minute filaments
going to the parts about the mouth, are given oflf from the
anterior face of the ganglia. The infra-oesophageal ganglia
are four in number, but so united as to form a ring (fig. 6, c
and cJ,) through which passes a large arterial trunk distributed
to the parts about the mouth. The nerves arising from the
supra-oesophageal ganglia appear to be, for the most part,
nerves of sensation and those from the infra-oesophageal
ganglia are almost if not entirely distributed to the organs of
motion. These two sets of ganglia are united by commis-
sures, from which last a few minute filaments are given oflf
on each side.
Organs of Generation. The male organs consist of a
testis, vas deferens and penis ; the female of an ovary, oviduct,
and spermatheca ? or vesicle ; both sets of organs terminate
in a common receptacle, which opens externally by a single
orifice just behind the upper tentacle on the rigiit side. The
testis (fig. 7, a,) has an irregular spheroidal form, is of an ash
gray color, and composed of numerous lobules, each lobule
consisting of minute granules. It is in part enveloped by the
posterior lobe of the liver (fig. 1, c/.) The vas deferens (fig. 7,
b,) is a whitish duct, slightly convoluted at its commencement,
and becoming more so as it approaches the ovary. It is
closely united to the oviduct throughout the convolution of
the latter, and as it separates from it (fig. 7, e,) it reaches the
male organ in the form of a long and slender tube without
Tehennophonis Carolinensis 415
convolutions. The penis, (figs. 7 and 8, /,) when retracted,
has an irregular convoluted form in consequence of being
folded upon itself. The ovary (fig. 7, c,) is a yellowish colored
organ, very slightly lobulated, has a conical shape, its base
resting on the oviduct. Tiiis last consists of two portions;
the first, commencing at the ovary, is united with the vas
deferens, and forms numerous folds upon itself, resembling
an intestine ; it terminates in the second portion 7v, which has
a very small diameter, and without any convolutions. At
fig. 7, h, and fig. 8, a, is a rounded vesicle, which is
supposed to resemble in function the spermatheca of insects,
and which is united with the oviduct at its termination, by a
long slender duct (i and h.) At the termination of this duct is
the small coecum (fig. 7, z,) of which there is no analogue in
the Limaces. Both the male and female organs terminate in a
common sinus (fig. 7, /, and 8, h.) This sinus is provided
with a yellowish glandular organ which nearly surrounds it
externally. The external orifice of the organs of generation
has already been described.
EXPLA.VITIOX OF FIGURES OX PLATE XXII.*
Fig. 1. The different organs represented in situ; a respiratory sack; b position
of the stomach ; c c liver; d testis ; ^y integuments.
Fig. 2. Digestive organs ; a mouth or buccal pouch ; 6 salivary glands and duct;
c termination of oesophagus; d stomach ; e e liver; //intestine.
Fig. 3. a buccal pouch ; b projection formed by the tongue retracted ; c oesopha-
gus.
Fig. 4. A. Teeth on the central portion of the tongue ; a teeth on the median line
symmetrical ; b 6 lateral teeth oblique ; B. c c c extreme lateral teeth.
Fig. 5. a terminal portion of stomach ; b intestine ; c c bile ducts.
Fig. 6. Esophageal ganglia and nerves.
Fi"-. 7. Or fy cms of generation, a testis ; 6 vas deferens ; c ovary ; rf oviduct ;e
continuation of vas deferens ; /penis; g retractor muscle; h vesicle, and i its
duct ; k continuation of oviduct ; I termination of genital organs ; m coecum ; o
tentacle; p anterior extremity of cuirass.
Fig. 8. a vesicle ; b its duct ; c and d oviduct ; e vas deferens ; /penis ; g caecum ;
h glandular organ surrounding the termination of the genital organs.
* The plates, referred to in this memoir, and in that on Glandina truncata, were
executed for Dr, Binney's work, and are loaned by him for the use of this Journal.
416 On the Anatomical Structure of
ART. XXXV. — ox THE AXAT03IICAL STRUCTURE OF GLAXDIXA
TRUXCATA OF SAY. By Jeffries Wyman, M. D.
(Communicated November lo, 1843.)
A KNOWLEDGE of the aiiatomical structure of this animal
has been a desideratum, from the time when its external pecu-
liarities were announced by Mr. Say, until now. The privi-
lege having been lately allowed to me of examining one of
the specimens which were forwarded to Dr. Binney, by J.
Hamilton Couper, Esq. of Darien, Ga., to whose politeness and
zeal for the advancement of natural science this Society and
many individuals are indebted for similar favors, advantage
was taken of it to make as minute an examination as time
would permit. The result of the examination is embodied
in the present paper. The opportunity of investigating the
anatomy of Bidimus ovadis of ]Mullcr, and Achat hia perdix of
Lamarck having occured at the same time, the means were
afforded of comparing the structure of the three genera.
When the animal is removed from the shell, the different
organs remaining in the same position as when in the act of
crawling, we have exposed anteriorly the head, protruded
beyond the principal mass of the viscera, (PI. xxiii. fig. 1.)
The viscera are bordered anteriorly by the collar (« of,) behind
which is the respiratory cavity, (6 h.) occupying the larger
portion of the upper and left lateral surfaces, and after making
a single turn behind the viscera terminating on the right side
at d. The respiratory and anal orifices are situated just
beneath the right extremity of the collar at a. The genital
orifice is farther forward, a litde posterior to the upper tenta-
cle. The liver, (e c,) forms nearly the whole of the posterior
portion of the visceral mass.
In the general characters of its organization, G. truncata
resembles the genera Limax and Helix, but differs from them
in the existence of an additional pair of tentacles and a corres-
ponding modification of the nerves distributed to them, in the
arrangement of the teeth on the tongue, in the complicated
form of the stomach, and in some other characters of less
importance.
Glandina triincata^ of Say. 417
Nutritive System. In Helix, Limax, Vaginulus, Achati-
na, Bulimus, and nearly all other genera of the pulmoni-
ferous Gasteropoda, the buccal organ is almost uniformly
either of an ovoidal or spherical shape, its transverse being
but little less^than its longitudinal diameter.* In G. trun-
cata, it is strikingly contrasted with that of the genera just
mentioned by its remarkable size, and the muscular power of
the tongue which it encloses. The parietes of the buccal
cavity consist of a thin cylindrical muscular sack, slightly
curved at its posterior extremity, (fig. 2, a a,) measuring an
inch in length, and one fifth of an inch in diameter. The
tongue occupies a large portion of the buccal cavity, is carti-
laginous, concave above, convex below, and attached to the
inferior and posterior surfaces of the cavity, by several very
strong and distinct muscles ; its anterior or free portion is
buried in part in an excavation on the floor, immediately
above which, is the entrance to the oesophagus. The teeth,
on the surface of the tongue, are sharp pointed, elongated,
and somewhat recurved, arranged in lines " en chevron," the
apex being directed backwards. There are no teeth on the
median line, corresponding to the axis of the tongue, and in
this respect it differs from many of the Pulmoniferous Gastero-
poda, in which a range of median symmetrical teeth is gener-
ally found to exist.
The salivary glands, though apparently forming but a single
organ, resemble those of the other Pulmonifera, in having a
single duct to each, terminating one on either side of the
oesophagus at its origin from the mouth, (fig. 2, c c) but
diflfers from them, in being so arranged as to form a collar or
ring through which the oesophagus passes.
The oesophagus, (fig. 2, h,) commencing on the upper sur-
face of the buccal organ, having passed through the salivary
gland, terminates in the stomach on one of its lateral faces.
The stomach consists of two portions, a membranous, and
muscular, (/ and e. The first or anterior portion, d, is
* See anatomical descriptioas of the genera Limax, Helix, and Tebennophorus.
46
418 On the Anatomical Structure of
voluminous, of an irregular form, terminating anteriorly in a
cul-de-sac ; and posteriorly becoming very much contracted
in its diameter, and ending in the second or muscular portion.
This last, e, is very small, compared with the preceding, and
is distinguished by its thick and muscular walls, which form
an irregular triangular mass. Between the muscular portion
and the intestine there is a third cavity, i, with very thin
parietes, which appears to be nothing more than a dilatation
of the intestine which commences here. The intestine is of
an uniform size, slightly convoluted, and but a small portion
of it enveloped by the liver ; its terminal portion passing
along the right border of the respiratory sack, terminates in
the respiratory or face under the anterior edge of the collar,
(fig. 1, a).
The liver is less voluminous than that of the Helices, is
composed of a larger and a smaller lobe, (»• g, fig. 2,) the
first occupying the larger portion of the posterior whorls of
the shell. Both lobes discharge their secretions into the
muscular cavity of the stomach, by one and the same duct ;
in the genera Limax, and Helix, there are two.
The kidney, or depuratory organ, is attached to the supe-
rior walls of the respiratory sack, and is remarkable for its
elongated form ; a portion of it is shown in fig. 1, c, and in
fig. 3, a, it is shown entire, with its excretory duct, (J) b.) The
glandular portion has a crescentic form, largest anteriorly,
where the excretory duct commences. The excretory duct
passes along the parietes of the sack, in a direction parallel to
the gland, gradually diminishing in size for a short distance,
(fig. 3, b b,) after which it passes to the rectum, to which it
becomes loosely united, and with which it terminates at the
respiratory orifice. Numerous vessels are seen on the surface
of the respiratory sack, directed towards, and connected with
the organ which we have denominated the kidney, on the
authority of Blainville, and others, and where the blood is
supposed to undergo the depuratory process.
The respiratory sack (fig. ], b b d,) has the same position
as in the Helices, from which it difl^ers but little, excepting in
Glandina iruncata, of Say. 419
being more voluminous. It occupies the whole of the anterior
half of the surface of the viscera, and descending on the left
side beneath them terminates on the right at d.
The heart and pericardium are enclosed in the respiratory
sack, but are less closely attached to the kidney than in the
Helices.
Nervous System. The nervous system (fig. 4,) consists
of the supra and infra-cesophageal ganglia united by com-
missures and of two other ganglia much more minute, united
to the first pair by very delicate filaments ; if other ganglia
exist, 1 have not been able to detect them. From the three
pairs just mentioned, are given oflf nerves to the different
organs of the body. From each of the supra-oesophageal
ganglia are given off two nerves, of which the anterior and
smaller is sent to the superior or occular tentacle, a, and the
posterior much larger than the preceding to the third pair of
tentacles c, but which in its course gives off a small filament
to the second pair h. Other filaments more minute are given
off from the superior ganglia to the parts about the mouth.
The infra-oesophageal ganglion appears to be composed of
several smaller ones united together so as to form a ring, in
the centre of which is an open space through wliich passes a
large arterial trunk to be distributed to the parts about the
head and mouth.* The superior and inferior ganglia are
united by long and slender commissures, e, each of which
is composed of three filaments distinct from each other. The
ring thus formed by the union of these two sets of ganglia
embracing the buccal organ, is remarkably distinguished by
its size, from the same part in Helix, Limai, Tebennophorusy
Bulimus, and Vagijiulus, where it simply embraces the oeso-
phagus. The nerves derived from the lower ganglion are
principally locomotive and are distributed to the foot and
integuments. The third pair of ganglia (fig. 4, s^,) are
situated on the upper face of the buccal pouch, near the
commencement of the oesophagus and are united to the supra-
* A similar conformation exists in the genera Limax, Helix, and Tebcnnophonis,
but I have not seen it described in any treatise on the subject.
420 On the Anatomical St met lire of
(Esophageal ganglia, by two very delicate commissures, f;
the nerves given off by these ganglia all appear to enter the
walls of the buccal organ, and are all very minute.
Genital System. The testis (fig. 5, a,) is of an oval form,
is not imbedded in the liver, but is loosely attached to its
surface. The vas deferens, b, when it reaches the under
surface of the ovary at b^, becomes convoluted, forming a
species of epididymis ; it is continued along three fourths of
the whole length of the oviduct, forming a glandular looking
band, attached to its side ; at A: it separates from the oviduct,
in the form of a simple tube,/, which acquires a great length,
and terminates in the base of the penis ; this terminal portion
of the vas deferens \s slightly enlarged near its commencement,
otherwise it is of a uniform size. The penis, g, is triangular
at its base, and terminates by a small cylindrical tube, in the
cavity common to it, and the female organs. The ovary, d,
and the oviduct, c c, do not differ materially from the same
organs in the Helices. The vesicle, e, or spermathecal and its
duct are closely connected with the oviduct, the vesicle itself
being in contact with the ovary. The length of the duct of
the spermatheca, is proportioned, or nearly so, to that of the
male organ. The male and female organs terminate in a
common receptacle, i, which opens externally at a short
distance posterior to the upper tentacles.
Muscles. All the muscles except one, which, by their action,
retract the different organs within the body of the animal, or
the body itself within the cavity of the shell, have their origin
from the columella, where they are all collected into one or
two bundles. The buccal pouch is retracted by three or
four slips attached to its posterior extremity, and protruded by
two others (fig. 3, a a). The tentacles are each provided with
a retractor muscle ; also the male organ, the muscle of which,
as in the Helices, Achatince, and Bulimi, is attached to the
floor of the respiratory cavity ?
The anatomical structure of G. truncata having been de-
cribed and compared with some of the other genera of
Pulmonifera, it still remains to institute a comparison between
Glandina tnincata, of Say. 421
it and that of the genera Bulimus, and Achatina, to which
it is more intimately alHed, and with which it has been con-
founded. The means of making the comparison are derived
from the dissection of Achatina perdix, from western Africa,
and of Bulimus ovatus. In both Bulimus and Achatina the
buccal pouch has the same ovoidal form which is found in
nearly all the genera of Pulmonifera ; in Glandina it is so
much elongated that its longitudinal exceeds many times its
transverse diameter. There exists no horny beak, at the
entrance of the mouth of Glandina ; in Bulimus and Achati-
na, it is large and denticulated on its concave or cutting edge.
The teeth on the tongue of the two last genera, are arranged
in transverse lines, extending from side to side without undu-
lations, and of a uniform size, and obtusely conical shape,
with a symmetrical range on the median line ; in Glandina
they are acute, recurved, smallest towards the centre and
edges, arranged " en chevron," but wanting on the median
line. The three genera are provided with a muscular stomach
or gizzard, but Glandina alone has the membranous portion
terminating anteriorly in a cul-de-sac. In Glandina the
salivary glands form a distinct collar or ring, around the oeso-
phagus ; in the other two genera they are separate, as in the
Helices. In Bulimus and Achatina, the anterior lobe of the
liver is the largest; in Glandina it is smallest. There appears
to be but one bile-duct in the last, and there exists two large
ones in the former. The third pair of tentacles, which are so
prominent in Glandina, are represented by two buccal fringed
lobes in Bulimus : neither tentacle nor lobe exist in Achatina ;
in Bulimus, as in Glandina, these are provided with a special
nerve. In Achatina the male organ is loosely enveloped in
a large and muscular sheath, which does not exist in either of
the other genera.
These are the most prominent differences between Glandi-
na and the other genera, others of less importance also exist ;
but those which have been enumerated seem to be sufficient
to demonstrate that the genus Glandina cannot be con-
founded with either of the others.
422 Alger on the Identity of
EXPLANATION OF FIGURES.
Fig. 1 . Animal removed from the shell, organs in situ ; a a the collar ; b b respira-
tory sack ; c kidney ; d termination of the respiratory sack ; e e liver.
Fig. 2. Digestive organs ; a a buccal pouch ; & oesophagus ; c c salivary glands
and ducts ; d membranous stomach ; e gizzard ; J" bile-duct ; g g lobes of the
liver ; h h intestine ; i dilatation at its commencement ; k retractor muscles of the
mouth.
Fig. 3. Kidney; a kidney surrounded by the vessels ramifying on the surface of
respiratory sack ; b excretory duct ; c terminal portion of intestine.
Fig. 4. Nervous system ; a upper tentacle ; b and c middle and lower tentacles ; d
supra- oesophageal ganglia; e commissures between the last and infra-oesophageal
ganglia ; J" filamentary commissure uniting small ganglia g with the superior
ganglia.
Fig. 5. Organs oj" generation ; a testis ; 6 vas deferens; c oviduct; doYary; e
vesicle ; y continuation of vas deferens ; g penis ; h retractor muscle ; i common
receptacle ; k k duct of the vesicle or spermatheca ?
ART. XXXVI. — BEAU3I0NTITE AND LINCOLNITE IDENTICAL
WITH HEULANDITE. By Francis Alger. Read October 5, 1843.
There is a too prevalent disposition among mineralogists, as
well as among the cultivators of other departments of natural
science, to add something new to the catalogue of species.
They make specific differences in many cases where, by a
fuller investigation, or a nicer comparison of the object with
that which most nearly resembles it, an identity might be at
once established between them, and the science not be bur-
thened with so many new names. The truth of what I now
say, has been shown by the recent examination of several
minerals, accredited as new, which have been found, by some
of the German and Swedish chemists, to be varieties of other
species, or in some cases, mere mechanical mixtures. A very
frequent source of these mistakes, so far as mineralogy is con-
cerned, is owing to a scrupulous regard not being paid to the
chemical composition of the substance ; this being the essen-
tial basis of mineralogy as a true science. Another cause
may be traced to the different appearances, which the same
Beaiimo?itite, Lincolnite^ and Heulandite. 423
mineral, from different localities, assumes in some of its ex-
ternal characters ; appearing, perhaps, under some new mod-
ification of its primary form.
A remarkable instance of the latter, has recently been pre-
sented in the case of the mineral examined by M. Levy, and
named Beaumontite.* This substance has long been familiar
to our American mineralogists, as the associate of the Hay-
denite found near Baltimore.! It has now become exceedingly
valuable, principally through the investigations of M. Levy,
who has thus supposed it to be a new substance. It is a very
beautiful mineral, and being extremely scarce, it will continue
to be highly prized by mineralogists, both here and abroad,
even if it should prove to be no new species, but only a rare
modification of a well known one. I believe it has not been
described in any of our late treatises on mineralogy, nor am I
aware that any notice has been taken of it in the American
Journal of Science.
On comparing the crystals of this substance, with several
of those of the Heulandite of Nova Scotia, which presented a
modification rather uncommon, I was satisfied that they were
both derived from the similar replacement of the acute lateral
edges, and obtuse solid angles, of the same primary right
oblique angled prism ; the planes jT, which in most instances,
are small, being now so extended as to reduce the length of
the figure to nearly the same dimensions with its breadth ;
thus giving rise to what might, at first sight, appear to be a
square prism, terminated by two obtuse four-sided pyramids,
resting upon the opposite lateral faces of the crystal, as I have
endeavored to represent by the subjoined figure 2. The
* M. l^evy read his paper before the French Academy of Sciences, (L'Institut.
1839, No. 313, p. 455.) An abstract of his communication may be seen in the London
and Ediuburs^h Phil. Mag. for February, 1840.
t M. Levy's examination of the Haydenite, has confirmed the more general opinion
among mineralogists of its simple character. By some it had been allied with
chabaric ; but the early investigation of Dr. Hayden, showed a marked disagree-
ment between them in chemical composition, and Professor Cleaveland has proved
to be correct in the opinion which he gave of it in the first edition of his Mineralogy.
Our knowledge of this mineral will soon be complete, by the analysis of Mr. B.
Silliman, Jr. who now has it in hand.
424
Alger on the Identity of
Fig. 1.
/\ P
A
/"mY t ■ ■
f
P on M or
T
90^
MonT
130
M on a
147 17/
Mon /
114 20/
P on a
111 59'
Ton a
148
Fig. 2.
/1"^~X
7
V 1 /"" X
y
planes a a', being carried to the extreme, so as to entirely
obliterate the edge formed by the planes M and T, of the
right oblique prism, fig. 1, — the pyramids thus resulting are
very beautiful in both minerals, particularly in the Beaumon-
tite, and they present the same characteristic vitreous lustre,
contrasted with the soft, pearly white reflection of the planes
P, which we always observe in the crystals of this mineral
from other localities. Both minerals, however, present shades
of brown and yellow. On further comparing their hardness
and pyrognostic characters, and failing also to obtain any
other cleavage in the Baltimore specimens, than that well
known in Heulandite, I could have but little doubt that M.
Levy, (unless he had described some other very analogous
mineral from this locality, wliich I have not seen,) had been
misled by its unusual crystalline form, and, instead of making
known a new species, had only given us the wrong characters
of an old one. 1 am sure that he would not have been led
into a mistake of this kind, had the crystals examined by him
presented those gradual changes which have ultimately given
rise to the figure which he supposed to be the primary right
square prism of the Beaumontite, and which we so readily
observe in the crystals from Nova Scotia.
This is the onhj respect in which the Heulandite from Nova
Scotia, and M. Levy's mineral, diflfer from each other ; and
it is in reference to this single peculiarity in the approximation
of the crystals of the Nova Scotia mineral to a right square
prism, that it has hitherto commanded an especial interest
among our mineralogists. I had never seen the decrement
carried so completely out in the crystals from any other local-
ity, until these beautiful specimens met my eye from Bahi-
more. The smaller replacements b b', which are often seen
Beauinoutite^ Linculaite^ and Heulandlte. 425
in the crystals of this mineral from Faroe, I have never ob-
served among the specimens from either of the localities here
referred to, nor from any locality in the United States.*
To remove all doubt as to the identity of the two minerals,
I requested Mr. J. E. Teschemacher to separate some of the
best crystals from my Baltimore specimens, and subject them
to measurement by the reflecting goniometer, as I well knew
the public would have the fullest confidence in his use of that
instrument. He has informed me that P on P gives 90'', M
on T 130% M on a 143" 17^ P on a 111° 58^ and adds that
he has no doubt the mineral is Heulandite. The variation in
the third measurement was owing to the imperfection of
the surface. We have, therefore, every reason for believing
that the specific nature of the Beaumontite of M. Levy, can
no longer be maintained. It is proper to add, that the same
name, in honor of a distinguished French naturalist, Elie de
Beaumont, had already been applied to another mineral from
Chessy, in France, described and analyzed by my friend. Dr.
Charles T. Jackson. f
Lincolnite. — Prof. Hitchcock, in his Final Report % on the
Geohs^ical Survey of Massachusetts, has given the description
of a mineral found in the vicinity of Deerfield, which he has
named in honor of the late governor of this State. Unfortu-
nately, it must share the same fate with Beaumontite, though
it seems less entitled to the distinction of a new species ; for
in every respect but one, viz. its not being replaced on the
obtuse solid angles by the planes a, as shown in fig. 1, it is
impossible to discover any dissimilarity between this mineral
and Heulandite ; both exhibiting the same characters before
the blowpipe, the same color, lustre, hardness, etc. The
crystals of Lincolnite are very small, usually requiring a
microscope in their examination, and they have their acute
lateral edges replaced by very narrow planes ^/^. corresponding
in their measurement with Heulandite. But, according to
* See fig. 2 in Phillips's Mineralogy', Allan's edition, p. 25.
t American Journal of Science, Vol. xxxvii. p. 398.
t Final Report &,c., p. 662.
47
426 Probable Infiiience of
Prof. Hitchcock, they differ from Heulandite in the proximate
measurement of planes M on T about 10° (being 120° instead
of 130°) as determined by the measurement of three different
crystals with the common goniometer. It must be confessed,
that the comparison of one set of characters alone, without
some other corroborative evidence, — especially when, as in
the present instance, the crystals are too small to admit of
the accurate use of the common goniometer, does not au-
thorize the making of a new species. Having received a few
crystals of this mineral from Prof. Hitchcock, 1 also requested
Mr. Teschemacher to measure them. The results showed
the same agreement with the recorded measurements of W.
Phillips, and have therefore established the true nature of this
mineral beyond any doubt.
I would remark that crystals, precisely like those described
by Prof. Hitchcock, have lately been found in gneiss on New
York island, and apparently in the same rock, associated with
phosphate of lime, at Suckasunny, New Jersey.* There can
be no doubt, 1 think, that the radiated or fasciculated mineral
accompanying these crystals is stilbite, and not a variety of
Lincolnite or Heulandite, as Prof. Hitchcock supposes.
ART. XXXVII. - PROBABLE INFLUENCE OF ICEBERGS UPON DRIFT.
By John L. Hayes, Porlsmoulh, N. H.t
At a time when the attention of geologists is so generally
directed to observing the phenomena of drift, and especially
when the agency of ice is deemed so important to explain
* Among some specimens which I have lately received from Copenhagen,
through a distinguished friend of science, Compte de Vargas Bedemar, I
observed precisely the same modified crystals with those of Lincolnite, but
no near approach to the form of Beaumnntite. These specimens are from
Faroe, a region which the Count has personally examined.
t Originally read before the Association of American Geologists and
Naturalists, May, 1843.
Icebergs upon Drift. 427
these phenomena, it seems desirable that we should have more
extended information upon the natural history of icebergs.
To obtain the desirable information upon this subject, I have
directed letters to various nautical gentlemen, from whom I
was led to expect information. I visited New Bedford, the
great centre of the American whaling business, and directed
my inquiries to the masters of whaling ships, who frequently
encounter icebergs in the southern latitudes. I visited Ston-
ington, and consulted the hardy and intelligent men who have
prosecuted the seal fishery in the Antarctic regions, and who
have a more intimate knowledge of the south polar regions
than any men living. Besides drawing from these sources of
information, I have conversed with many masters of our mer-
chantmen and Labrador fishermen, who often meet the ice
upon the Banks of Newfoundland. I have also seen three or
four individuals who were familiar with the ice in the Arctic
Seas. The number of persons whom I have consulted is
nearly a hundred. I have also collected such facts from the
authentic published accounts as might bear upon the subject
of my inquiries.
In making my investigations, I have been scrupulously
careful to consult only those whose general reputation would
entitle them to entire credit, and have principally directed my
inquiries to the masters and officers of vessels. I have been
influenced by no attachment to a particular theory, or desire
to collect an imposing mass of facts. I have endeavored to
discharge my task as one would execute a judicial commis-
sion to take testimony ; placing down alike negative and
positive evidence; rejecting only that which was impertinent
or contradictory. Those who have attributed so many of the
phenomena of drift to the action of icebergs, may be sur-
prised at the small number of facts obtained from such ample
sources of information. Yet the evidence will have the
same scientific value as if many more positive facts were
presented.
The present inquiry results from the attention which has
been given, within the last three or four years, to the so called
428 Probable influence of
glacial theory. Within that period, the structure of ice, its
mode of formation and progression in those mighty masses
which hang upon the mountain sides at the limit of per-
petual snow, its abrading and transporting influence, have
attracted profound attention. A distinguished philosopher of
Edinburgh, Prof. Forbes, ^vho expresses the importance which
has been attributed to this subject, remarks, that " the glacial
theory, whether it regards the present or past history of those
mighty and resistless vehicles of transport and degradation,
yields to no other physical speculation of the present day in
grandeur, importance, and interest." Since our last meeting,
several of the most profound philosophers and geologists of
Europe have encamped for weeks upon the glaciers of the
Alps, to explore their various phenomena, and have filled
the scientific journals with their acute, though, unfortunately,
acrimonious discussions upon the glaciers.
The proper glacial theory, as originally proposed, which
attributes tlie abrading and and polishing of rocks, the trans-
portation of erratic blocks, and the formation of some of the
peculiar accumulations or ridges of gravel and bowlders which
occur in our drift, to the agency of mountain glaciers, has
lost the favor which it originally received. A modification
of this theory has been suggested by Mr. Murchison, the
President of the London Geological Society, in his late
annual address, whose views are nearly the same, if I mistake
not, as those advocated by geologists in our own country.
He supposes that icefloes, and their detritus, might be set in
motion by the elevation of the Scandinavian continent, and
the consequent breaking up of the (^reat glaciers on the
northern shores of a sea which then covered all the flat re-
gions of Russia; that t!ie bottoms of these icebergs, extend-
ing to a great depth, must have, every here and tliere, stranded
upon the highest and most uneven points of the bottom of
the sea, and that the lower surface of the iceberg, like the
lower surface of a glacier, would score and grate along the
rock.
I may say, in short, that ths eflfects which have been at-
Icebergs upon Drift. 429
tributed to the agency of icebergs by the advocates of the
aqueo-glacial theory, are, the transportation of earth and large
fragments of rock, the abrading and furrowing of the rocks,
the distortion and bending of strata of clay and sand, the
formation of bowl-shaped cavities by the rotatory movement
of the stranded berg, and the formation of accumulations, or
ridges of bowlders and gravel, like the moraines which border
the glaciers. We must reason from actual to ancient causes,
and, to ascertain the soundness of these views, must study the
phenomena of icebergs in our present seas.
I will now proceed to present the facts which 1 have
collected.
I. As to the mode of formation of icebergs, their original
position, and the manner in which they have been detached.
II. The magnitude and form of those floating at sea.
III. The direction, rate and nature of movement, the
limits of their transport, their grounding and dissolution.
IV. Positive and negative testimony as to the transporta-
tion of fragments of rock, bowlders, mud, and earth.
I. The islands of ice which are seen at sea, and receive
the name of icebergs, have been, without doubt, originally
detached from the glaciers of the north and south polar shores.
The term Iceberg was originally given to the glaciers of
Spitzbergen and Greenland, and is now applied by the South
Sea sealers and whalers to the glaciers of the South Shetlands,
South Georgia, Sandwich Land, and Terra del Fuego. Scores-
by, the most accurate writer upon the Arctic Seas, says that
the greater part of the icebergs that occur in Davis's Strait are
merely fragments of large glaciers which exist in great num-
bers on the coast forming the borders of Baffin's Bay. These
glaciers fill immense valleys, and extend, in some places, sev-
eral miles into the sea. In others, they form a precipitous
edge at the general line that forms the coast.
In Greenland, according to Graab, the long narrow bays or
fiords, like broad rivers, run far up amid the lofty mountains
or table-lands of the interior. The vast plains of the interior
430 Probable influence of
abut upon these fiords ; hence the greater number are closed
by a glacier, close to which the water has often a depth of
several hundred fatlioms. Several of the inlets are now com-
pletely filled up, and at others the ice projects far out into the
waves, forming a considerable promontory.
1 have obtained from Mr. Fernald, of Portsmouth, a gen-
tleman of great intelligence, and of remarkably accurate
habits of observation, a statement prepared from a minute
journal of the facts observed by him, in relation to ice, during
a residence of fifteen months among the islands of South
Georgia and Sandwich Land. He observes that " the Island
of South Georgia, lying in latitude 54° 30', is deeply in-
dented with bays, some of them so deep on opposite sides as
almost to meet in the centre. Many of the bays have large
icebergs at their head, not yet free from the shores. During
our stay there," he says, *' I visited many of the icebergs.
They were all formed in the valleys, at the head or sides of
the bays, between tlie mountains, and make oft' into the sea.
The snow falls to great depths on the mountains and valleys.
The rays of the low summer sun, not reaching the snow in
the valleys, melts it on the tops and sides alone of the moun-
tains. Tlie streams running down upon the great body of
snow in the valleys, and congealing every successive year,
add annually a new covering, until the whole space between
the mountains inland, and on the side next the bay, presents
a perpendicular and sometimes overhanging mass, several
hundred feet high above the water, and a mile or two in
length."
He further remarks, " In our cruise we searched some of
the islands at Sandwich Land. In some places the ice made
from the tops of the highest hills down into the sea. In one
place, in particular, the sea had washed in under the ice as
far as we could see, and this huge body of ice, four or five
hundred feet in height on its face, and a mile or two in length,
hung, not touching the beach by four or five feet, except at
the sides of the mountains where it formed. The face next
the sea was nearly perpendicular."
Icebergs iipoJi Drift. 431
Nearer the south pole, the glaciers are not seen in the
valleys and between the mountains alone, but along the whole
shore. Captain Benjamin Pendleton, of Stonington, who
cruised Palmer's Land for some hundred miles, and who,
indeed, sent Palmer to explore the continent which has re-
ceived his name, informed me that the ice rises from the
shore, in some places, apparently 1500 feet; while, in the
interior, the mountains rise like the Andes. The land is so
concealed by the ice, that only a point is here and there seen.
In the account of the Expedition of the Astrolabe, D'Urville
says, that in passing along the newly-discovered continent of
Adelie, they skirted, for twenty leagues, a perfectly vertical
wall of ice, elevated 120 to 130 feet above the waves, whose
surface was perfectly level. Here we have the source of
some of the enormous level icebergs of which I shall hereafter
speak. In other places, a coast was presented from 12 to
1800 feet in height, which was completely levelled upon its
summit by the ice and snow, having only ravines and bays
along the shores. Captain Ross describes the glaciers on the
coast seen by him in the 70th degree of south latitude, as pro-
jecting many miles into a deep ocean, and presenting a per-
pendicular face of cliffs.
The fixed icebergs of the northern and southern polar re-
gions being proper glaciers, we must expect to find them
governed by the same laws, and exhibiting the same general
phenomena, as the glaciers of the alpine summits which have
been so thoroughly explored.
Like the glacier, the fixed iceberg is formed by the yearly
accession of the winter's snow, which is transformed into neve
or granular snow, or, as Mr. Emmons calls it, metamorphic
snow, and then into glacial ice, by the absorption and con-
gelation of the rain or water, which proceeds from the melting
of the neve or snow. In the Antarctic regions, the annual
accession must be very great. Mr. Davison, of Stonington,
informs me that, when they first reach the South Shetlands,
after seal, in the early part of the summer, the snow upon
the islands is nearly twenty feet deep. Even as far north as
432 Prohahle influence of
South Georgia, according to Mr. Fernald, the depth of snow
from a single fall in winter is often over five feet.
Intelligent observers, as, for instance, the commander of
the French Exploring Expedition, have found it difficult to
account for the formation of the glacial ice, as no marks of
stratification from the annual deposit were seen by him in the
southern glaciers. But this appearance, as is shown by the
observers of the Swiss glaciers, is replaced by a new struc-
ture which the glacial ice assumes in the course of its forma-
tion. This is a vertically-veined and ribboned structure of
blue and white ice, resulting from an alternation of more or
less compact bands of ice, their breadth varying from a small
fraction of an inch to several inches.
The imbedding of bowlders and fragments of rock is a
well-known phenomenon of the Swiss glaciers. De ]\Iartens,
in his memoir upon the glaciers of Spitzbergen, says that
blocks of rock exist at the surface and in the interior of the
glaciers or fixed icebergs of that island. Mr. Fernald ob-
serves that, while at South Georgia, he visited an iceberg in
a valley several hundred acres in extent. It was mostly cov-
ered with small stones, that appeared to have been washed
down from the tops and sides of the mountains. This ice-
berg was nearly level, and about fifty feet above the surface
of the sea. It was full of chasms, running in all directions,
some thirty or forty feet deep. He remarked, at the time,
that one of them was large enough to drive a cart through.
The water was pouring down the mountain-sides, at the head
of the iceberg, into the chasms, in streams large enough to
turn a cotton-mill. This was in midsummer. He afterwards
visited this glacier in winter ; every chasm was filled up, and
the whole iceberg had a new face.
Captain William Pendleton, of Stonington, remarked to
me, before I called his attention to the subject, that there was
something very singular about the ice of the South Shetlands.
This was, that there would be often seen large rocks and
pieces of stone projecting from the clifT of ice which formed
the shores, some of them of many tons weight. These rocks
Icebergs upon Drift. 433
had often particularly attracted his attention, and he could
not account for their being so found. Mr. Thomas Davison,
of Stonington, also informed me that he had seen rocks of
several tons weight in the side of a fixed iceberg, where a
portion had fallen off.
The glaciers of the South Shetlands and Sandwich Land
are frequently covered with earth and sand, which appear
to be often of a volcanic character.
Captains William and Benjamin Pendleton, Messrs. William
Ash, and Thomas Davison, of Stonington, have separately
described to me a singular phenomenon, which was observed
upon the high glaciers of the South Shetlands, at the height
of several hundred feet above the level of the sea. In many
places, near the immense fissures which occur in those glaciers,
are seen piles of black earth and sand. These piles or heaps
of earth appeared precisely as if they had been carted and
dropped in various places along the ice. Immediately below
the earth, the hard blue ice could be seen, in the fissures, ex-
tending down hundreds of feet. This phenomenon, 1 think,
must be peculiar to volcanic regions like the Shetlands. It
would be difficult to account for the peculiar form and posi-
tion of these piles of sand without the supposition of volcanic
action.
The low glaciers would seem to be more thoroup^hlv cov-
ered. Captain Benjamin Pendleton informed me that, in
18-21, he lost a seaman at the South Shetlands, and, with
a gang of twelve men, went ashore upon one of the islands
to bury him in the earth. They dug in a great many places
through the blue sand and earth ; but, after digging six or
eight inches, invariably came to the blue solid ice. They cut
a hole in the ice, into which they placed the body, covering
it with sand and ice, placing up a board, alas ! the sailor's
only monument, to mark the spot. In 183*2, eleven years
after. Captain Barnum dug the body from the ice, and found
the body and clothes appearing as if they had been just de-
posited.
Mr. Fernald visited a volcanic island in Sandwich Land,
48
434 Probable iiifiuence of
-whose centre was occupied by a very high peak covered with
ice. The shores were covered with scoriae and volcanic
ashes, which appeared as if they had been recently deposited ;
for in some places smoke or gas was seen escaping. They
dug into the scorice and sand to the depth of a foot or
more, to find the source of the smoke, and found that the
scoriae and sand were but a superficial covering for the hard
ice, which extended from the central peak to the sea.
If we review the facts now presented, we have exhibited
the phenomena of fixed icebergs or glaciers, strewed with
stones transported from the mountains, and covered with a
new deposit of ice and snow : large blocks of stone, in the
perpendicular wall of the iceberg, overhanging the sea ; piles
of sand on the high glaciers ; sand and volcanic scoriae cov-
ering the low glaciers upon the borders of the sea ; and a
body preserved for years from decay in the solid ice, and
which might there remain thousands of years, like the elephant
of Siberia. We have only to conceive of the increase of
the low glaciers by the causes already indicated, and of the
advance of all the ice which contains these extraneous mate-
rials into the deep seas which wash the polar coasts, of por-
tions being detached, and floating into northern seas, to have
in action, in our own day, the power which is supposed to
have transported the materials of the drift from the ancient
mountain-sides.
The supposition above made, that the glaciers, situated as
those above described, might, in time, reach the sea, and be
floated from the shore, will not appear improbable, when we
consider the manner in which the glaciers advance, and the
separation of the iceberg from the shore. Upon this difficult
subject, the researches of Charpentier, Agassiz, Forbes^ and
others, on the glaciers of the Alps, have thrown much light*
The glaciers of the Alps and Spitzbergen are filled with innu-
merable fissures, produced, as Agassiz conjectures, by the
expansion of compressed bubbles of air within the ice. These
fissures are generally parallel with tlie front face of the glacier ;
larger fissures or crevices are produced during summer. The
Icebergs iipon Drift 435
innumerable fissures render the glaciers porous and permeable
to water. The dilatation of the water freezing in the crev-
ices, constantly tends to the enlargement of the glacier, which
must advance in the direction where there is the least resist-
ance, xllthoupjh, in some cases, the weight will add to its
progression, it is owing to this expansion, principally, that, at
certain seasons, the glaciers constantly tend to advance. It
would seem that fissures, precisely analogous to those of the
Alps and Spitzbergen, are seen on the glaciers or fixed ice-
bergs of the Antarctic regions.
Captains Pendleton, Messrs. Ash and Davison, and Captain
Frederick G. Low, of Gloucester, all speak of the enormous
fissures or chasms which are found on the surface of the
glaciers, at the height of many hundred feet above the sea.
These fissures are described as running parallel with the
shore, and are often several miles in length. The observers
have particularly noted their length and width, from being
often obliged to walk along them for a great distance before
finding a place narrow enough to be crossed in safety. Cap-
tain Barnham judged that they were sometimes over five
hundred feet deeo, as he has been unable to see the bottom
when looking down. Captain Low informs me, by letter,
that he measured the depth of one eighteen inches wide, into
which he fell when the ice was covered with snow, although
he saved himself bv extendinsr his arms, and found it seventv-
five feet deep. The description given by all, of the extreme
beauty of the azure light reflected from the walls of the
fissures, strikingly reminds one of the accounts, given by
Agassiz and others, of the same appearance in the fissures of
the Swiss glaciers, a peculiarity of color which Agass'z says
is witnessed only in the mountain waters.
Prof. Forbes says that these singular vaults on the Alps
have all the grotesque varieties of outline which are so much
admired in calcareous caverns, but which here show to far
greater advantage, in consequence of their exquisite transpa-
rency and lustre, and from being illuminated, instead of by a
436 Probable injlaence of
few candles, by the magical light of a tender green, which
issues from the very walls of the crystal chambers.
Men and dogs have often been lost in these fissures while
crossing the glaciers, when they were covered with snow.
The sealers use the precaution of passing a small rope around
their waists, to be held by their companions when crossing
the glaciers, which are covered with snow.
I may be pardoned for relating an anecdote of a remarka-
ble escape, which was told me by several individuals who
knew the fact. A young man from Stonington, who visited
the South Shetlands on a sealing voyage, was anxious to ex-
plore one of the glaciers ; as he could not induce his com-
rades to accompany him, he started alone. While walking
on the surface of the glacier, which was then covered with
snow, he fell into a fissure, to the depth, as was supposed, of
over a hundred feet. He was so much bruised and injured
by the fall, that he remained senseless, it was supposed, some
hours. Upon reviving, he found himself wedged between
the walls of the narrowing chasm. His first feeling was re-
gret that he had not been instantly killed, as there appeared
no mode of escape. But, as he thought of dying in such a
manner that his friends would never know of the place or
manner of his death, he determined to make an effort to save
his life. Taking his jacknife, he began to cut steps for his
feet in one side of the wall, while he pushed himself up with
his back. He continued cutting until his fingers were com-
pletely lacerated by hard, sharp ice, and until the chasm be-
came so wide that he could just reach the ice with his knife.
However, he at length reached the surface, and was found by
his comrades crawling along the glacier, twenty-four hours
after he had Allien. Although he thus wonderfully escaped
with his life, he was so lacerated and bruised that he was unfit
for labor for several months. As my informant said, no one
but a man of remarkable spirit and strength would have had
the energy to save iiimself under such circumstances.
The same expansive power existing in the glaciers of the
Icebergs upon Drift. 437
polar regions as in those of the Alps, they must be constantly
advancing into the sea, as the glaciers of the Alps do along
the valleys. It is well known that, on the Alps, these pro-
longations of the winter-world above are protruded into the
midst of warm and pine-clad slopes and green sward, and
sometimes reach even the borders of cultivation. As Prof.
Forbes says, the very huts of the peasantry are sometimes
invaded by this moving ice ; and many persons now living
have seen the full ears of corn touching the glacier, or gath-
ered ripe cherries from the tree with one foot standing on
the ice.
The deep seas, which are always found near such moun-
tainous coasts, readily float away those masses which become
detached. No one whom 1 have particularly examined has
ever witnessed the actual separation of those vast islands
which are found floating, and of which 1 shall hereafter speak.
But, from the accounts of all those who have visited the
southern glaciers, immense masses are constantly falling from
the ice-cliffs, which are floated away by the sea. Captain Benja-
min Pendleton informs me that he has seen the ice fall from a
cliff" for the length of half a mile. The noise made by the
bursting of the glacier and fall of ice is compared to thunder.
When the sealers first visited the South Shetlands, they sup-
posed the noise made by the bursting of the iceberg was oc-
casioned by shocks of an earthcuake. The harbors and bays
in which the sealers lie are often filled in this manner by the
fall of ice. Mr. Curtis, of Portsmouth, who was with Mr.
Fernald in South Georgia, stated to me, that on one occasion
they put into Merry's Bay, on South Georgia. The sea and
the harbor, when they put in, was entirely free from ice. The
next morning, the bay was so filled with ice that fell during
the night that they could not get out to sea. They went upon
the hills at the head of the bay, and, although the weather
was clear, could see ice as far as the eye could reach.
It is a fact, wjiich should be remembered in connection
with the object of our inquiries, that the greater portion of
the ice falling from the glacier, consists of comparatively small
43S Probable infliience of
masses ; a large portion of the ice would be dissolved or
broken up before being transported to a great distance from
its source. For, though smaller masses would be tossed about
by the winds and waves, and might be easily dashed to pieces
on the shore, a large portion of the foreign materials of the
glacier, being detached with the smaller masses of ice, would
be dropped within a comparatively short distance from the
glacier.
An interesting phenomenon, connected with the fall of ice
in the glacial seas, is the formation of enormous waves by the
sudden displacement of large masses of water. Captain Low
informs me, in his letter, that the ice in the harbor where he
lay, was from three hundred to a thousand feet high ; and
that, whenever there was a heavy fall of ice, it made so much
swell that the ship would roll three or four streaks. Mr.
Fernald says that, in one of the bays of South Georgia, where
there was a large fixed iceberg or glacier, which he judged to
be four hundred feet high, they landed from the boat to search
the beaches for seal. The boat was hauled up on the beach,
her stern just touching the water, when a large piece fell from
the icebers: into the bav, and made such a sea as to throw the
boat sixteen feet upon the beach. The bay was at this place
a mile wide. This statement is corroborated by two other
individuals of the same party, who well remember the fact.
Mr. Darwin speaks of a great wave produced by the fall of
ice in Terra del Fuego, which he witnessed, and justly re-
marks that the waves formed bv the fall of ice must be a
powerful agent in rounding and sweeping together large frag-
ments of rocks, and likewise in wearing away projecting por-
tions. They must also be powerful agents in lifting up and
bearing away large icebergs already loosened, in breaking to
pieces the smaller bergs, in purging the larger icebergs from
the extraneous matters with which they may be loaded, and
in loosening and detaching fragments of rock — effects which
we shall hereafter see must often have been produced on ice,
at no great distance from their place of departure.
Icebergs iqjon Drift. 439
II. As the aqueo-glacial theory of drift supposes the ice-
bergs of the ancient seas to have been agents of enormous
power, we may judge of the probability of these conjectures
by inquiring as to the magnitude and form of those found
floating in our present oceans.
Those which come from Baffin's Bay, although often of
great height, appear to be of less extent than those seen south
of the equator. Captain Crocker, of New Bedford, measured,
with his sextant, one which was aground upon the Banks of
Newfoundland, and found it to be two hundred and forty-four
feet in height, and half a mile in length. Parry counted from
his deck, at one time, no less than one hundred and three ice-
bercfs, some of them from one to two hundred feet in height.
Captain Ross, in Baffin's Bay, saw seven hundred in sight at one
time, and several aground together, in 250 fathom, 1500 feet.
Those found in the Southern Ocean are of vast dimensions.
Several have spoken to me of icebergs which they judged to be
three or four miles long. Captain William Beck, of New
York State, informed me that, in 1835, in latitude 46"", he
saw an iceberg which must have been from five to ten miles
long. His own impression, and that of the master of the
ship, was that it was no less than ten miles in length ; when
they first saw it, they supposed it to be land. They were an
hour and forty minutes in sailing by it with a good wind.
Mr. Fernald and Mr. Curtis saw one near South Georgia
which they judged to be from ten to fifteen miles in length,
as they were several hours in rowing by it in a six-oared boat.
The estimates, made without actual admeasurement, cannot
be much relied upon, although I am inclined to think those
given by my informants have been rather within, than beyond
the truth. It will be interesting to refer to admeasurements
carefully made by the officers of the French Exploring Expe-
dition. I found that ten icebergs, whose dimensions were
given in one of the charts accompanying the account of the
Expedition of the Astrolabe, were between 90 and 150 feet
in heii^ht. Four were between 180 and 225 feet in heif^ht.
Sixteen, which, with two exceptions, were over 100 feet
440 Probable influence of
high, were from about 4000 to 6500 feet in breadth. Cap-
tain D'Urville remarks that, in going towards the west, they
had already seen some icebergs of fine dimensions, attaining
from about two miles and a half to five miles in length,
not to speak of their breadth. But, on the 20th of Feb-
ruary, they passed one which, having been accurately
measured, they found to be a compact mass, 11,000 toises,
over 13 miles, in length, and 100 feet high, with walls per-
fectly vertical. When we remember that the submerged
portions of these icebergs must be from six to eight times
more considerable than the portion which is visible, — for
the experiments upon the weight of ice give about these
proportions, — we may be truly astounded at their magnitude.
We may see in these floating ice-rocks, when fairly set in
motion, an agency of almost resistless mechanical power.
The ploughing up, or levelling and pushing along the loose
materials composing the shoals, which their lower portions
might touch, the piling up of sand and pebbles along their
sides and extremities, and the grating and binding of rocks
and beds of clay, are effects wliich we may readily conceive
to have been produced by them.
We cannot omit to allude to the various and picturesque
forms which icebergs exhibit, although, perhaps, no connec-
tion may be traced between their forms and the mechanical
effects attributed to them. Every variety of form may be
seen, from the huddled, peaked, and furrowed surface, to a
uniform plain. To one observer, the marvellous spectacle
which their fantastic forms present, recalls the palaces of
crystal and diamonds, so common in fairy tales ; another
beholds merely an island, with level summit and vertical
walls, resembling cliffs of chalk, in which he seeks in vain for
the picturesque beauty which he has heard described. The
remarkable resemblances, which have been noticed in these
ice-islands, cannot exist merely in imagination ; for the ac-
count given me by a rough, old whaler, who could see Amster-
dam and Rotterdam, witli their steeples, balconies, and por-
ticoes, in the icebergs which beset his vessel, is repeated by
Icebergs upon Drift. ^ 441
the polished French navigator, who says that, as the sun
shone upon the ice of the Antarctic, it appeared Uke an im-
mense city, with its palaces, its domes, and its towers.
III. I will now proceed to examine the facts which will
serve to explain the mechanical power of moving icebergs,
and consider the nature and rate of their movement, their
overturning and stranding.
All the observers whom I have examined, speak, without
exception, of the extreme slowness and steadiness of the
motion of large floating bergs. Nearly all say that they ap-
pear to be wholly unmoved by the winds or waves, although
one or two say that they appear to be very slowly moved by
the wind. Scoresby says that, in the strongest gales, they are
not perceptibly moved. Mr. Fernald remarks that the motion
of large icebergs is imperceptible. " I have seen them," he
says, " in a heavy gale, with a tremendous sea running; they
appeared as steady and motionless as the earth. The sea
dashes on their windward side as upon a fixed rock, while
under their lee a vessel may lie in perfect safety." Mr. Cur-
tis remembers lying to in a small schooner, under a large
ice-island, during a tremendous gale ; yet the little craft lay
perfectly safe, and made good weather. So great a portion
of the large icebergs being below the surface, their motion
must be principally influenced by the under currents, which
have a regular and steady flow.
The irregularity and unsteadiness in the movements of ice-
bergs has been considered an important objection to the the-
ory which ascribes the ancient diluvial scratches and furrows
to the scoring and grating of the iceberg along the rock. If
the facts and testimony which I have presented can be relied
upon, they show, in the icebergs of the present seas, precisely
that regularity of movement which was required to produce
the eflfects ascribed to the icebergs of the ancient seas.
I have carefully examined all those who have seen icebergs,
as to the rotatory motion which has been attributed to them.
No one of those whom I have examined ever saw any such
49
442 Probable influence of
motion, with, perhaps, the exception of Captain Barnum, who
says that he has seen an iceberg move very slowly on its
vertical axis. Captain Wilhani Rowland, who was engaged
in the seal fishery in the northern seas, and whose employ-
ment led him to land often on the icebergs to procure seals,
says that it was impossible that such a motion should have
occurred without his observing it. It is a well-known fact,
that the Greenland whalers and sealers move their vessels to
the floating icebergs, to protect themselves from the drift ice.
According to this evidence, some other cause must be sought
for the formation of the bowl-shaped cavities which occur in
the drift, than the rotatory or semi-rotatory movement of ice-
bergs.
The only remarkable movement which has been observed
in floating icebergs is that occasioned by their overturn.
This phenomenon has been noticed by all observers. The
falling of portions of the mass, which is called the calving of
the iceberg, or the wasting of the lower portions by warm
water, destroys the equilibrium of the berg, and causes it
either to overturn entirely, or so far as to bring a new surface
to view. Although, from the descriptions which are given,
the overturn of a huge iceberg in a calm sea, while the sun
is shining upon its glittering peaks, with all the circumstances
of the crushing of the fractured ice, the foaming and rolling
of the disturbed water, the sudden change in the form and
outline of the mighty mass, must form a scene of surpassing
grandeur, the only eflect which has interest in our inquiries
is the production of enormous waves, equalling or surpassing
those produced by the fall of ice, which are said to be so
heavy as to endanger boats at the distance of several miles,
and, in a perfect calm, to have dashed over the bows of a
vessel of forty tons, at a distance of five miles. By this
agency, Scoresby says, fields of ice are often broken up ; and
by the same agency the stranded bergs might be lifted up,
and urged along the bottom upon which they are grounded.
Icebergs are often seen aground in great depths of water.
1 have already mentioned those seen aground by Ross in
Icebergs upon Drift. 443
1500 feet of water. The large proportion of the mass which
is below the water, must cause them to be very easily and fre-
quently stranded. None of those whom I have examined
have ever witnessed any movement in the stranded bergs,
with the exception of Captain Low, who, in his letter, remarks
that icebergs, wJien aground, have the same laboring move-
ment that a ship in shore would have, with a heavy cargo
and a heavy swell. It is difficult, however, to conceive how
a large iceberg, a great proportion of whose mass is below
the influence of the swell, could have a movement analoerous
to that of a ship which is lifted by every wave. It would
seem, therefore, that the formation of hollows in the drift
cannot be explained by supposing the grinding and settling
down of the stranded berg into the loose materials.
That an immense lateral force must often be exerted by the
pressure of the iceberg upon the shore or shoals against which
they may be driven, is shown by a fact stated by Dr. Rich-
ardson— that the icebergs in the Arctic seas are driven with
such force against the shore, that they push before them, to
the height of several feet, every pebble or bowlder which lies
upon the bottom.
The length of time during which icebergs remain aground
may have some bearing upon the subject of this inquiry.
Captain Simpson, of New Bedford, saw an iceberg, half a
mile in length, aground at the mouth of the River La Plata,
in the winter, where it was wasting away during two months.
Captain Benjamin Pendleton saw one aground in 80 fathoms,
near the South Shetlands. Captain Barnum saw one aground
in McFarlane's Strait, three or four miles in length. He saw
it for two vears, and several of his crew remembered it as one
which was seen by Captain Pendleton's party eleven years
before. Captain Matthew Luce, of New Bedford, saw one
100 feet high, aground in 48 fathoms, on the Banks of New-
foundland. The fishermen had fished around it for thirty
days. Barriers of this magnitude, remaining for so long a
period, must exert a strong influence upon the distribution and
deposit of loose materials. Icebergs stranded where the
444 Probable influence of
detritus, borne down by rivers or moved by currents, are
deposited, as the instances of this aground at the mouth of
the La Plata or the Banks of Newfoundland, would be, in
time, surrounded by the loose materials ; the dissolution or
foundering of the berg would present hollows like those seen
in the drift ; or the iceberg might protect the bank upon
which it was aground, and prevent it from being washed
away, while the materials all around might be carried away.
The dissolution of the berg would leave a hill.
In connection with the subject of drift, it is interesting to
observe the direction in which the present icebergs are carried
from their source, and the northern and southern limits of
their transport. Their general course, as is well known, is
from the polar towards the equatorial seas, transported as
they are by the currents which set from the poles towards
the equator. If the northerly and southerly direction of these
polar currents is due to the excess of evaporation in the
warmer seas, and a flow of water from the colder oceans to
supply the loss, a theory which has been proposed by the
French philosophers, although I hardly dare to suggest any
theory, similar currents must have prevailed in the ancient
frozen seas, so that the ancient currents must have corres-
ponded with the general course of the drift.
The facts collected, as to the northern and southern limits
of the transport of ice, are as follows: Captain Crocker, of
New Bedford, who has crossed the ocean in command of a
packet ship one hundred and sixty-four times, says that he
never saw icebergs south of the 40th degree of latitude, and his
impression is that all seen south of the 46th degree are small.
Captain Luce, of New Bedford, has seen them in 41° north
latitude. Thev have been seen near the Azores, in latitude
4*2°. Captain Lane, of Portsmouth, informed me that, in
the year in which the President was lost, in going to Mar-
seilles, his ship came near striking an iceberg in about 41°,
and as fiir east as the 19th degree of longitude. There is no
evidence of their having been seen in the northern hemisphere,
south of latitude 40^. In southern latitudes, icebergs have
Icebergs upon Drift. 445
been seen at different points off the Cape of Good Hope,
between latitudes 36^ and 39^. One seen in those latitudes
was two miles in circuniferencej and 150 feet high. They
have been seen at the mouth of the Rio de la Plata, in lati-
tude 36°. Captain Simpson informs me that he has several
times heard of them off Cape Antonio near the same lat-
itude.
These immense masses cannot owe their destruction alone
to the melting of their surface by the sun or the heat of the
water. Did their dissolution depend alone upon this cause,
they might often be transported within the tropics. They
seem to contain within themselves a principle of destruction,
after they have been subjected to air or water of a certain
degree of temperature. Captain William Howland informed
me that the icebergs in northern seas, among which he cruised
in pursuit of seals, would often founder, as he expressed it,
during the summer weather. This foundering was produced
by the bursting of the large bergs with a tremendous report,
louder than that of a cannon. After the explosion, not a
piece of ice larger than a hogshead would be visible.
Mr. Ichabod Goodwin, a merchant of high standing in
Portsmouth, who was formerly a shipmaster, informed me
that he was crossing the x\tlantic in the ship Marion, in the
month of.May, 1827, when, in latitude 41° 30', and in longi-
tude 50^, they passed within a quarter of a mile of an ice-
berg which they judged to be about sixty feet high, and over
a hundred feet in length. While all hands were below, they
heard a report like the discharge of a cannon, and, upon
rushing on deck, found that the iceberg had exploded, and
had gone completely to pieces. The sea where it just before
lay was in considerable agitation. Upon looking with a glass,
an hour after, not a particle of ice could be seen. Captain
Lake, of Portsmouth, has witnessed the same phenomenon
off Labrador.
This explosion of the iceberg may be attributed to the
same cause to which Agassiz attributes the Assuring of the
glaciers, namely, the expansion of the air, compressed at the
446 Probable injiuence of
time of the freezing and formation of the berg. The com-
paratively small number of icebergs seen in lower latitudes,
favor the conjecture that this must be a common mode of
destruction. Without some such agency, our oceans would
be completely obstructed with floating ice.
The fixed limits which appear to be thus assigned to the
transport of icebergs is an interesting fact, and peculiarly so
in connection with the aqueo-glacial theories of drift, if the
statement made by Humboldt, and repeated by Darwin, is
correct, that no angular fragments are found in the vast inter-
tropical plains of South America, and that, within the south-
ern and northern hemispheres, no fragments coming from
polar regions or mountain groups arrive within any consider-
able distance of the limit of the tropics.
IV. The most important view in which icebergs are to be
regarded is with respect to their influence in the transportation
of bowlders and angular fragments of rock and earth. Most
geologists unite in supposing that icebergs were important
agents in lifting and distributing the enormous bowlders and
erratic blocks which are found in the drift, at a distance from
their parent rocks. I shall give all the positive and negative
evidence which I have been able to collect upon this point.
Captain William Rowland, who was in the constant habit
of landing upon the icebergs in the northern seas, observes
that he has often seen bowlders and fragments of rock from
four to six feet in diameter, although not more than one in a
hundred would have any foreign matters on it. Captain
Sampson, of New Bedford, informed me that he once saw,
on the sloping side of a large iceberg, upon the Banks of
Newfoundland, a large quantity of earth. It appeared to be
about a foot in thickness ; near the water it had been washed
away by the waves. The space thus covered seemed to him
to be about fifty feet in width, and an eighth of a mile in
length.
Captain Barnum, of Stonington, informed me that he saw, in
latitude 55° south five large islands, whose surface was black
Icebergs iq^on Drift. 447
with an admixture of earth and stones. Being struck with
the appearance of the icebergs, he landed upon one. Many
of the stones were a foot in diameter. They had sunk in the
ice, and small pools of water had formed around them.
It would seem that the occurrence of foreign materials
upon the icebergs is to be observed principally near their
source. Captain Benjamin Pendleton remarked that, upon a
large number of the icebergs in the extreme southern lati-
tudes, and especially near the South Shetlands, bowlders
and fragments of rock of various sizes could be seen. He
compared their magnitude to the boxes and bales of goods
lying in a country store. It was as common, he said, to see
rocks and bowlders in the icebergs at the South Shetlands as
to see them at Stonington Point. Those seen at a distance
from the Shetlands, near Cape Horn, for instance, rarely if
ever contained them.
Mr. Low says, in his letter, that he has seen large rocks
and earth attached to icebergs, but saw them near the shore.
He never saw earth or rocks on floating icebergs far from the
shore.
Dr. Gilchrist, of the navy, who was one of the surgeons
of the Exploring Expedition, informed me that they saw no
bowlders or fragments of rocks upon icebergs until near the
great barrier of ice, and in close proximity with the land, at
which time, as is well known from Mr. Wilkes's synopsis,
they met with icebergs covered with mud and rock.
These facts are entitled to observation, in connection with
the fact stated by our geologists, that the great mass of the
drift will be found within fifteen or twenty miles from its
original place.
Enormous blocks, however, are sometimes carried to a con-
siderable distance from their original position.
Captain William Beck, formerly of Stonington, informed
me that, in latitude 63° south, and about one hundred miles
from the South Shetlands, he saw an immense mass of round
rock attached to a floating iceberg. The diameter of tiie
rock he judged to be at least twenty feet. It appeared to him
448 Probable injiiience of
of the size of a small house. The fact was so curious that
he noted it in his journal.
Fewer facts of this kind are mentioned in the narratives of
voyagers than might be supposed from the great transporting
agency which geologists have ascribed to floating icebergs.
All the recorded facts of importance can be briefly pre-
sented.
The most striking is that mentioned by Scoresby, who
speaks of five hundred icebergs, which he saw in the 70th
degree north latitude. Many of them contained strata of
earth and stones, and were loaded with beds of rock of great
thickness, of which the weight was conjectured to be from
fifty to a hundred thousand tons. This, it will be remem-
bered, was so far north as to be, probably, at no great distance
from the source of the iceberg.
Weddel says that, when in latitude 61°, longitude 31, with
islands of ice his constant companions, he saw an island which
he supposed to be rock, and fully expected to find terra firma
in a short distance. It was not until passing within 300
yards, that they could satisfy themselves that it was not land ;
the north side was so thickly incorporated with black earth,
that hardly any one would have hesitated to pronounce it
land.
Mr. Bynoe, the surgeon of the Beagle, informed Mr. Dar-
win that, more than twenty miles from the head of Sir G.
Eyer's Sound, they landed upon one of many floating masses
of ice, which were only two or three feet above the surface.
In the central part of the surface was a piece of granite, of
an angular form, partly imbedded. The ice had melted so as
to make a shallow pool of water around it. Mr. Sorrel, boat-
swain of the Beagle, said that he had seen, in the seas
around South Georgia, small icebergs, with mud and gravel
upon them, floating from the shore. Mr. Sorrel also saw,
to the eastward of the South Shetlands, an iceberg with a
considerable block of stone upon it.
Captain Hunter informed Mr. Darwin that he had seen
numerous islands of ice in the neighborhood of South Georgia,
Icebergs upon Drift. 449
many lialf black, apparently, with earth from the land to
which they had adhered, or with mud from the bottom on
which thev had formed.
Dr. Mertens, in his memoir upon the glaciers of Spitzber-
gen, said that his colleague, Mr. E. Hobart, had seen floating
ice in crossing Bell Sound, stained at the surface with earth,
which, for the moment, was taken for islands.
The negative testimony upon this subject will, to many,
appear remarkable ; for, of more than sixty persons whom I
have examined, only seven remember to have seen foreign
materials upon the iceberg. Captain Crocker, who, as I have
before remarked, has crossed the Atlantic one hundred and
sixty-four times, and who says that he has seen thousands of
icebergs, never remembers to have witnessed any such appear-
ance. Captain Luce, who had seen hundreds of icebergs,
never saw any stones or earth upon them. ]Mr. Fernald, a re-
markably accurate observer, although he says that he has seen
hundreds of icebergs between Georgia and Sandwich Land,
never saw stones or earth on any of them afloat. The com-
mander of the French Exploring Expedition makes no mention
of his having seen extraneous matters on the numerous islands
seen by him, although he had been particularly instructed to
notice such phenomena. Dr. Mertens says that, in the voy-
ages of the R.!^cherche, in the Spitzbergen seas, he never saw
blocks transported by ice. Captain Biscoe, who had extended
his researches in the Antarctic, says, in a letter to Mr. Darwin,
that he had never observed, in a single instance, mud or
fragments of stone on the numerous icebergs encountered by
him in his voyage. The evidence upon tliis subject has con-
vinced me that islands of ice, floating at a distance from their
source, are remarkably free from all impurities.
It must be remembered that the evidence upon this subject
is negative, and not entitled to the same weight as positive
testimony. The voyagers are so much occupied with the
perils of navigation among the ice as to be inattentive to
phenomena whicli would be observed by scientific men.
Again, where mud or stones were attached to the bottom of
50
450 Probable influence of y
icebergs at the time of their separation from the glacier or
land, especially the level bergs, which are not liable to be
overturned, the materials attached would never become ex-
posed, while they would soon be loosened by the action of
the water. Another consideration is to be observed. It
cannot be questioned that the foreign materials are more
abundant upon the icebergs near their source. Around the
smaller stones and sand the ice is melted, so that they would
be easily detached. Around the larger blocks, from the state-
ments of Captain Pendleton, and the observations of Agassiz,
the ice is melted, so that the large blocks project upon the ice ;
they might thus be easily detached by contact with other ice-
bergs, the overturning of the iceberg, or the washing of waves
produced by the fall or overturn of neighboring masses of ice.
I am so fully aware of the danger which exists of forming
altogether too broad conclusions as to past phenomena, from
the limited examination of actual causes, that I hesitate to
present any more general inferences from the facts now ex-
hibited than such as have been already hinted at. But, as
there seems to exist a ri^ht to demand of evcrv collector or
observer of facts the conclusions which he has been led to
form from their examination, I will briefly present the infer-
ences which may be drawn from the facts which I have ex-
hibited as to the mechanical and transporting agency of ice
in the ancient seas.
1. The steadiness in the movement of the icebergs of our
present seas, in the direction and under the influence of the
great under currents, and the southerly course of these under
currents in our northern hemispheres, from causes which must
have prevailed, as well in the ancient as in our present seas,
favor the theory that icebergs, with gravers of rock in their
lower portions, or pressing the sand and gravel, by their im-
mense weii^ht, along the surface of the rocks, in the bottoms
of the ancient oceans, might have scored and grated along
the rocks, grinding off their salient points, and leaving the
surfaces smootlied and striated in the fixed southerly direction
in which now they occur.
Icebergs upon Drift. 451
"The objections that the surfaces of the rocks must have
been often protected from the action of the moving icebergs
by intervening mud and sand, and that the lower portions of
icebergs could not correspond with the uneven surfaces of the
rocks, and leave the traces of their progress ahke on the
mountain-sides and in the valleys, cannot be met by any facts
above presented, as to the form and nature of movement of
icebergs. We may, therefore, conclude that they have not
been the sole instruments in furrowing and grooving the
rocks beneath the drift.
2. The immense magnitude of the icebergs in our present
seas, and the evidence of their present mechanical power,
when moved by strong currents, warrant the conclusion
that they must have exerted a powerful influence in pushing
and crowding along the sand and gravel which formed the
bottoms of the ancient seas, and in thus forming accumula-
tions somewhat analogous to the moraines of the glaciers.
3. The length of time during which large icebergs may
remain aground, even when swept by rapid currents, which
currents might surround them with sand and mud, or sweep
away the loose materials, leaving hills or banks upon spots
protected by the stranded icebergs, favor the idea that this
agency had an influence in giving the present form to our
drift.
4. The formation of glaciers or fixed icebergs, upon the
present coasts, under such circumstances that fragments of
rock, and detritus from the land upon which they form, be-
come attached to them, the constant advance and separation
of the glaciers from the land, and their floating into the sea
as icebergs, with their loads of earth and rocks, lead to the
conclusion that icebergs, breaking off' from the shores of
ancient seas, were important agents in the transportation of
rocks and earth from their parent beds. The existence of
immense fragments of rock, in situations where they could
not have been carried by water alone, as on the sides of hills,
with valleys intervening between them and their parent beds,
452 Descripfwns of Land Shells
but where they might have been left by stranded icebergSj.
favors this conclusion.
5. The fact that a large part of the fragments detached
from glaciers are of small size, and that these small fragments
of icebergs or glaciers are dissolved and broken to pieces, at
no great distance from the parent glacier, together with the
fact that fragments of rock, although often seen near the
source, are rarely seen at a distance, lead to the inference,
that the same causes limited the transportation of the bowl-
ders and larger fragments of the drift, to within the compara-
tively small distance from the parent rocks at which they now
occur.
ART. XXXVIII. — DESCRIPTIONS OF LAND SHELLS FROM THE
PROVL\CE OF TAVOY, IN BRITISH BURMAH. By Augustus A.
Gould, M. D. Read September 6, 1843.
In correspondence with the Rev. Francis Mason, mission-
ary of the Baptist Board for Foreign Missions at Tavoy, one
of the provinces of British Burmah, 1 expressed a wish that he
would send me some of the shells he might meet with in his
journeyings. He very promptly interested some of the natives
in the undertaking, and, by their assistance, soon forwarded
me a collection, which 1 propose to notice in the present
paper.
The province of Tavoy is situated between 13° and 14°
S(y north latitude, and between the Bay of Bengal on the
west, and the kingdom of Siam on the east. It is traversed
by a range of mountains, from 500 to 1500 feet high, and
is well watered by large rivers. As it is out of the track of
commercial enterprise, it has been little explored by Euro-
peans.
The collection contained thirty-five species, out of which I
have, as yet, been able to identify only four or five as described
from the Provi?ice of Tavoy. 453
species. This is a very extraordinary proportion of new shells
to be obtained from any part of the world, at the present
day. In the present paper, I propose to confine myself to
some of the land shells which I regard as new ; reserving the
fresh water species for another occasion.
HELIX PROCUMBE.NS.
Plate XXIV. Fig 1.
Testa discoidea,, supra planulata, subtus convexa, epidermide pallida cornea, late
umbilicata ; anfr. qualuor, ulliino deflecto ; apertura rctundata, labro reflexo, albo.
Description.
Shell depressed, discoidal, flat above, passing off* below,
from the periphery, by a convex slope, to the rounded verge
of a broad, profound umbilicus, which distinctly exhibits all
the whorls within ; whorls four, the outer one deflected, so
that the commencement of the lip is more than half way
down towards the umbilicus ; aperture rounded, rather wider
than high ; lip white, reflected, not flattened, the two extrem-
ities nearly continuous ; surface slightly wrinkled, covered
with a pale yellowish horn-colored epidermis.
Diameter | of an inch ; height { of an inch.
Belongs to the group of which H. planulata is the type.
HELIX INFRENDENS.
Plate XXIV. Fig 6.
T. orbiculata, depresso-conoidea, comeo-virescente, subcarinata, supra rugose
striata, infra glabra, nitida, regione umbilicali indentata ; anfr. 7 convexis, sulura
impressa ; apertura coarctata, labro vix reflexo, deutibus tribus pliciformibus
instructa.
Description.
Shell small, orbicular, depressed-conical, of a greenish
horn color ; spire slightly elevated, composed of about seven
convex, compact whorls, elegantly marked above by promi-
nent, equal, and equidistant radiating striae, which gradually
disappear, till, beneath, it is quite smooth and shining ; the
periphery is slightly carinated ; the under side is convex, but
sinks, at the umbilical region, into a deep pit. The aperture
454 Desc?'lptions of Land Shells
was apparently intended to be lunate ; but, in consequence
of an inflection of the lip, beginning at about one third the
distance from the carina, it is rendered almost linear, and is
still farther contracted by three oblique, pliciform teeth, on
the inflected portion ; lip white, very slightly reflected.
Diameter f of an inch ; height | of an inch.
Very closely allied to H. Rangiana, Fer.
HELIX (Caracolla) GABATA.
Plate XXIV. Fig. 9.
Testa albido-cornea, supra planulata, infra valde convexa, late et profunde umbil-
icata; anfr. 43, leviter striatis, ultimo carina castanea circumdato; apertura .sub-
quadrata, labro albo, reflexo.
Description.
Shell pale horn-color, shining, showing about four and a
half whorls above, which compose a nearly discoidal spire ;
suture distinct ; the last whorl somewhat channelled near the
periphery, which consists of a prominent, obtuse, compressed,
chestnut-colored carina, fully developed to the lip ; beneath,
greatly convex, descending suddenly into a broad, deep,
tunnel-shaped umbilicus, passing nearly through the shell;
surface faintly marked by the striae of growth ; aperture ren-
dered somewhat quadrangular by the junction of the lips and
the two angles at the keel, and the ridge at the umbilicus ;
lip white, reflected, commencing below the keel, then rising
to a level with it.
Diameter | of an inch ; height less than | of an inch.
Much like H. scahriuscula in form and aperture, but quite
different as to surface, color, and umbilicus.
HELIX (Caracolla) ANCEPS.
Plate XXIV. Fig 4.
Testa lenticulari, pallide cornea, acute carinata, supra striata, subtus nitida, vix
perforata; anfr. 6, supra planulatis, sulura submarginata ; apertura lunulari, labro
simplici, angulal^.
Description.
Shell depressed-conical above, somewhat more convex
beneath, compressed, of a pale horn color, rather fragile ;
from the Province of Tavoij. Aoo
whorls six, flattened above, and separated by an indistinct,
margined suture ; periphery prominently and acutely carinate,
above regularly and closely costate-striate ; beneath convex,
with very minute striae of growth, smooth and shining ; cen-
trally-excavated, and with an almost imperceptible umbilicus ;
aperture commencing a little below the carina, lunate, with a
sinus or angle where the keel terminates; lip simple, sharp.
Diameter y^ of an inch ; height less than | of an inch.
In general form, color, and sculpture, it resembles H. acies,
Fer., (acutimargo Rosm.) but is much smaller, and not widely
umbilicated.
HELIX (Caracolla) RETRORSA.
Plate XXIV. Fig 5.
Tesla orbiculata, sinistrorsa, utrinque convexa, pallide castanea, arete umbilicata ;
anfr. 5, lineis longitudinalibus et volventibus minute rugosis, ultimo cariuato ; aper-
tura rotuuriata, labro acuto.
Description.
Shell large, sinistral, orbicular, about equally convex above
and below, but most rounded below ; of a pale chestnut or
fawn-color above, growing paler to the umbilicus, where it is
pale horn-color. Surface somewhat undulated by the irregu-
lar lines of growth, and rendered minutely rugose by very
fine, serpentine, revolving lines, forming conspicuous wrinkles
near the carina ; whorls five, forming a regular, moderately
elevated spire, the suture slightly impressed, the periphery
surrounded by a prominent, compressed, but acute keel, which
becomes lost towards the aperture ; aperture rounded, height
and width about equal ; lip simple, slightly everted in the
umbilical region : some vitreous matter across the penultimate
whorl ; umbilicus rather large, but not deep.
Diameter 1| inches; height 1 inch.
This large heterostrophe Helix resembles an inverted spe-
cimen of one of that group of shells, so common and so
varied, from the Philippine Islands, of which H. Lamarckii
is one. Young specimens might, at first glance, be con-
founded with H. Himalana, Lea; but the Himnlana is much
more globular, the surface less striated, the carina quite indis-
tinct, and the umbilicus smaller.
456 Descinptions of Land Shells
VITRINA PRiESTANS.
Plate XXIV. Fig 2.
Testa depressa, fragili, nitid&, straminea; anfr. tribus, striis incrementi et striis
volventibus reticulatis ; aperlura sub-coarctala.
D
ESCRIPTION.
This shell has the usual ear-shaped form of other species
of the genus. It is principally remarkable for its great size,
being, perhaps, the largest species known. There are about
three whorls, not rising into a spire, distinguished by a delicate
suture, which has an adjacent impressed line. The surface is
delicately marked by the lines of growth, and these are crossed
by shallow, somewhat scattered, revolving furrows. The ap-
erture is nearly circular, rather wider than high ; the lip is
very delicate, generally inflected near its posterior junction,
and the final additions to the shell are such as to cause the
outlet to be somewhat contracted, or pursed in. The color
is dark straw-color, or amber-color, inclining to green. A
thin layer of enamel unites the two extremities of the lip.
Greatest length | of an inch ; heighth | of an inch.
HELIX (Streptaxis) PETITII.
Plate XXIV. Fig 7.
Testa oblique ovato-subglobosa, albido-virescente, arcte umbilicata ; spira atifr. 7,
convexiusculis, apice obtusa, supra striata, subtus Ifevigata; apertura subquad-
rata, antice rotundata ; columella dente lamelloso instructa ; peristomatc albo, undu-
lato, reflexo, ad anguluni posticum attenuate.
Description.
Shell obliquely ovate-globose, of a greenish white color,
having a moderate, regular umbilicus ; spire obtuse, of seven
whorls, which, on the superior aspect, exhibit distinct and
regular lines of growth ; beneath, polished about the umbi-
licus ; aperture semi-elliptical, rather large, having a single
compressed tooth on the transverse portion, nearest to, and
partially joining, the external lip ; lip white, reflexed, and
recurved, the external portion salient near the middle, and
rapidly narrowed posteriorly.
Length f of an inch ; breadth less than i^a of an inch.
from the Province of Tavoy. 457
In size and exterior, it closely resembles S. aherratn, Sou-
leyet, but is rather larger. The aperture of the latter is,
however, smaller, and ringent with teeth, besides having three
folds near its channelled umbilicus. Its aperture is more
nearly like S. Souleyetiana Petit ; but the latter is described
as having its umbihcus extending into a canal, and its peris-
tome sub-continuous.
I dedicate it to ^I. Petit de la Saussaye, one of the most
accomplished conchologists of the present day, who has added
several species to this subgenus, and to whom I am under
many obligations.
BULDIUS ATRICALLOSUS.
Plate XXIV. Fig. 3.
Testa solida, imperforata, oblongo-ovata. vix striata, sulpiiurea ; anfr. 7 convex-
iusculis, ad suturam constrictis ; apertura lunato-ovali, basi sub-effusa, labro albo,
reflexo, marginibus callo atro juactis.
Description.
Shell imperforate, elongated ovate, solid, smooth, and
shining, of a sulphur-yellow color ; w'horls seven, moderately
convex, somewhat girt in near the suture ; last whorl nearly
two thirds the length of the shell ; aperture ovate-lunate,
somewhat angular at base, and slightly effuse ; lip white,
widely revolute, not flattened ; columella white, the callus
uniting the extremities of the peristome, and, as far within
the shell as can be seen, pitchy-black ; from the midst of it,
extending across the penult whorl, is a line of tlie same color,
showing the termination of a former stage of growth.
Length 2^ inches ; breadth 1 inch.
Two specimens of this shell were received. They are of
the same type as some of the shells from the Philippine
Islands, as vittntus, Dryns, and mncuUfcrus. The black or
molasses-colored callus seems to be constant, and distributed
as in B. iostoma ; though I have a shell, probably from Singa-
pore, which is somewhat sliorter, more ventricose, and with
one whorl less, and the entire aperture while.
51
458 Descriptions of Land Shells
CLAUSILIA INSIGNIS.
Plate XXIV. Fig. 8.
Testa fusiformij sinistrorsa, solida, castanea; anfr. 9 convexis, leviter striatis ^
apertura purpurea, rotunclataj lamellis duabus fortibus postice, et quinque tenuibus^
per teslarri apparentibus, intus instrucla; labro valde reflexo.
Description.
Shell reversed, solid, large, fusiform, ventricose, of a dark
chestnut brown ; whorls eight, convex, very delicately and
regularly striated, shining, summit mamillated ; aperture ovate,
broadly rounded in front, with a sinus behind, produced by
one of the two large folds which are there found ; on break-
ing away half a volution, we find five other very delicate
lamina, which may be seen externally, by looking at the um-
bilical aspect of the shell ; the posterior one is near the suture,
and extends nearly a whole volution ; the others intervene, at
nearly regular intervals, between it and the umbilicus ; throat
purplish ; lip very broad, flattened, white, tinted with purple.
Length 1 inch ; breadth 1 of an inch.
Resembles, in shape, color, and the arrangement of the
external lamina, C. Maccarana ; but it is larger and more
ponderous than any other species with which I am acquainted.
CYCLOSTOMA PERNOBILIS.
Plate XXIV. Fig. 11.
Testa depresso-conica, apice acuta, late umbilicata ; aiifr. 6 subdepressis, striis
incrementi conspicuis et striis volventihus rugulosis, ultimo carina costali albida
cincto ; apertura magna, intus c?erulescente, labro crasso, expanso, vivide sanguineo :
supernc coloribus piceis et lutescentibus vari} nubeculata ; infra albida, lineis piceis
volvenlitus interrupta.
Description.
Shell depressed-conical, apex acute, solid ; whorls six,
rapidly increasing, and rising into a pyramidal spire, depressed
near the suture. In the early stages, the whorls are acutely
carinated ; but, at maturity, the last whorl is rounded, and
girt with an obtuse, whitish rib ; the surface is rendered some-
what rugose, by rather conspicuous lines of growth, and coarse
revolving lines, which, as they cross the finer longitudinal
lines, seem to rufi in zigzag. Prevailing color above is dusky
from the Province of Tavoy. 459
brown, clouded by yellowish spots of various sizes, which,
on the posterior whorls, are arranged in radiating zigzag
series ; a broad space around the umbilicus, which is very
large and deep, is light straw color, with occasional revolving
black lines or bands ; aperture ample, somewhat wider than
high, bluish within ; peristome moderately reflected, rounded,
of a beautiful carmine, or bright cherry-red color ; not con-
tinuous, but embracing less than one fourth the preceding
whorl, across which space passes a callus of the same red color.
Diameter 2 inches ; height 1 inch.
This superb species is a little larger than any one hitherto
described. The C. involvidus, Sowb., is a miniature of it. I
received six specimens, young and old, all of the same mag-
nitude. 1 received with them a multitude belonging to other
smaller species ; but they w^ere so variable in appearance, that
I do not yet venture to pronounce them new species.
CrCLOSTOMA SECTILABRUM.
Plate XXIV. Fig. 10.
Testa turrita, spira acuminata, arete umbilicata, hrunnea; anfr. 8 sub-ventricosis^
vix striatis, penultimo sub-gibbo ; apertura sub-orbiculari, intus rubescente, peri-
tremate duplici. incrassato, albo, prope angulum posticum canali paurvo inierrupta.
Description.
Shell elongated, spire acutely terminated, of a light reddish-
brown color ; whorls about eight, convex, nearly smooth, and
shining ; the penultimate whorl, on a profile view, somewhat
gibbous ; last whorl not conforming to the axis of the pre-
ceding whorls, but thrust forward, so that the plane of the
aperture advances beyond a parallel with the axis; aperture
colored as without ; lip white, everted moderately, having a
slight fissure or canal across it posteriorly, at the outer angle
of the aperture ; posteriorly the lip is double, the iimer por-
tion continuous, the outer terminating as it touches the shell ;
umbilicus small ; operculum thin, horny.
Length 1 inch ; breadth ] of an inch.
Closely resembles C. ahum, Sowb., but has the fissure
across the peritreme on the opposite side. C. croceum, Sowb.,
may be only a faded specimen of this shell.
460 Descriptions and Habits of
ART. XXXIX. — DESCRIPTIONS A?sD HABITS OF SOME OF THE
BIRDS OF YUCATAN. By Samuel Cabot, Jr.. M. D. Read Nov. 1, 13-13.
In the number of the Annals and Magazine of Natural History
for October, 1843, published in London, is an article containing
a description of four species of Ortyx, said to be undescribed.
Among them is one which Mr. Gould, the author of the article,
calls " Ortyx nigrogularis," and of which he gives a description
of the male only. This bird is the same as the Ortyx discovered
by me in Yucatan, when on a visit to that country, in compa-
ny with Mr. Stephens, and mentioned by me in a memoran-
dum of the birds of Yucatan, which he published in the
Appendix to his second volume of "Incidents of Travel in
Yucatan," p. 474. The mention 1 there made of it is very
slight,* and hardly sufficient to constitute any right of priority ;
besides which, I could not wish the name altered, as it is very
well chosen, indicating the most marked feature in the appear-
ance of the bird. But, as Mr. Gould has only met with one
specimen of the bird, and that the dried skin of a full-
plumaged male, I have thought it worth while to give as full
a description of the history and habits of this bird, as a resi-
dence of seven months in their native country would enable
me to do, together with descriptions of the plumage of the
female and young.
In reading works relating to the discovery and conquest of
Yucatan by the Spaniards, we see mention made of the sac-
rifices of quails, offered by the natives to their idols ; some-
times the blood only was offered, and sometimes the whole
body. The bird there alluded to is undoubtedly the Ortyx
nigrogularis, as this is the only bird called Codorniz or Quail
* Of the genus Ortyx, one species was obtained, which, as far as phimage and size
go, is undescrihod; but it has the same note, habits, &,€., as our quail or partridge.
It is smaller; the throat of the male is jet black, and most of tlie markings are
different, though having a general resemblance to the Ortyx or Pcrdix Yirgiuiaaus.
They are very numerous in all parts of Yucatan.
soine Birds of Yucatan. 461
by the Spanish residents of the country.* The Ortyx nigro-
gularis, in its note and habits, is precisely similar to the O.
Virginianus. They whistle the Bob White in the spring ;
their covey-call, in the autumn and winter, is so precisely the
same, that they readily answered when I whistled the call of
our quail ; and, if 1 had previously scattered the covev, I
could always find them in this way. They feed on similar
food, and roost in the same way ; they also sometimes alight
on trees, as our quail. Their internal anatomy is the same,
as nearly as one can judge without actual comparison, organ
for organ. The flesh is the same in color and appearance,
but it seemed to me not so good for the table as our bird ;
but that may have been owing to cooking. In short, I look
upon this bird as giving some valuable hints with regard to
the possibility of climate producing marked alteration in re-
gard to color and size in the inferior animals, as well as
in man.
These birds are taken, by the Indian boys, in traps similar
to those used in taking our quail, and brought alive, in great
numbers, to the markets of the large towns of Yucatan.
The throat of the young male is light colored, nearly white,
and it resembles very closely the young O. Virginiana. It
does not get its full plumage till late in winter. I have the
skin of a young male among my specimens, which has light-
colored feathers among the black of the throat ; this specimen
was killed in the latter part of the month of December, at
which time I killed a great number, with more or less light
color on their throats. The Maya or Indian name of this
bird is Bech, the e pronounced with a guttural sound.
The dimensions given by Mr. Gould, being taken from a
* There is another species of Ortyx found in the country, which is called Chibe-
loupe, fronn its note, (which is very musical.) This bird is larger than the O. nigro-
gularis, being about the size of O. Virginiana ; but in markings it is very similar.
It is much more difficult to procure, both on account of rarity and habits, than O.
nigrogularis, which is another reason for presuming that it could not be the bird
spoken of as the one used in immense numbers, for various kinds of sacrifices, and
as food, by the Indians, at the time of the conquest, under the appellation of quails.
I saw but one specimen of the ChibeJoiipe, (a female) though I heard iLcm several
limes, in the thick, tangled, and impenetrable underwood.
462 Descriptions and Habits of
dried skin, do not agree exactly with mine. I did not measure
any mah so short as 8 inches, as given by Gould ; the shortest
was 8g inches ; and I measured some of as much as 8 1 inches
in length.
The female is from 8 to 8| inches long; tarsus, 1 J- inches
long; middle toe, If inches; tail, 2^ to 2f inches, consists
of 12 feathers, rounded; bill, i^ of an inch, nearly black;
top of head, back of neck, back, rump, upper tail coverts,
dark brown, with buff, reddish brown, and black, intermixed;
edges of wing coverts, very light buff, almost white ; throat,
chin, line extending across the forehead, and between the
bill and eyes to cheek, line over eyes, along superciliary
ridges to nape, deep buff or yellowish brown ; feathers of
breast, flanks, and belly, not fringed with black, as in the
male, but having light reddish color at the part next the quill,
then a pointed mark of very dark brown, on some feathers
almost black, then a large spot of very light bufl', on some
featliers white, and then a slight tip of dark brown on mar-
gin. The light spots on the breast are smaller than those
on the abdomen. There are large spots of reddish and dark
brown on flank feathers ; under tail coverts, nearly white,
with a lanceolate spot of dark brown or black along the mid-
dle of each ; legs, light flesh-colored ; primaries ash brown,
5 and 4 longest ; eyes of both male and female, hazel.
FALCO PERCONTATOR. Calling Falcon.
Of this new and beautiful bird, I had the opportunity of
observing only one pair, which I procured and brought home
with me, and whicli were the only individuals seen by me
while in Yucatan. I was one day standing, gun in hand, at
the edge of the g-reat senote, at Chichen Itza, awaiting the
arrival of my companions, in order to take a bath, the place
where I stood being about one hundred feet below the surface
of the around, and shaded from the vertical sun by a shelf of
rock, with an overhanging fringe of shrubs and vines, which
hung so low that 1 could only see to about six feet above the
surface of the water. 1 had been listening to an occasional
some Birds <>J Yucatan. 463
strange cry, which I thought must proceed from some species
of monkey, from its sonorous character, sounding like a
human tenor voice, repeating the word how, or haou, some-
times once, and then many times in rapid succession ; when
suddenly I heard the flapping of wings ; and, looking out
over the surface of the water, I saw a bird, looking like a
heron, flying across the senote, directly toward me. I waited
till it got within reach, and shot him dead. Almost before
he reached the water, a hawk made his appearance, apparently
pouncing upon him, when, with the remaining barrel, I laid
the destroyer at the side of his intended victim ; and, hastily
stripping ofl' my clothes, I plunged into the water, and brought
to land a cinerous boatbill, and the female of this noble hawk.
Every lover of nature, and particularly every ornithologist,
can picture to himself, better than I can describe, the delight
which I felt at procuring so valuable a prize. The next day,
at the same hour, namely, midday, I was at the same spot,
and for the same purpose ; and, listening to the diflerent
notes of the birds above, I heard the same sound repeated
which I had been listening to the day before. I determined
that I would, if possible, find out from what sort of throat it
proceeded, and, for that purpose, changed my position to one
from which I could see the trees which overhunsr the mouth
of the senote, and sat down to watch. After being seated a
short time, the sound was repeated, and 1 was enabled to
trace it as proceeding from the top of a gigantic tree which
overhung the water ; and, while straining my eyes to discover
its author, a second hawk, like the one I had procured the
day before, swooped down from the very spot on which I had
fixed my eyes, in pursuit of a dove, and, in the chase, passed
near enough to draw a shot from me, though an ineffectual
one. Three or four hours afterwards, as I was returning from
shooting, in consequence of a threatened shower,* my path
led me near the mouth of the senote ; and, hearing the cry
* This bird, as well as the Laughing Falcon, of which last there are a great num-
ber in Yucatan, cries a great deal more just before a shower, and the Indians say it
is because its bones ache.
464 Descriptions and Habits of
which had so much interested me repeated, I turned off, to
make another trial to ascertain its cause ; and, making my
way through the tangled undergrowth, to the verge of the
senote, I perceived, on the top cf the same tree, the hawk,
or one of the same species, in the act of uttering the cry
which I have described, and from which I have named the
bird. I crawled carefully round, till I got near enough, and
shot him ; and, on dissection, he proved to be the male.
Male. Bill strongly hooked, very obtusely toothed, robust,
almost black ; cere greenish yellow ; nostrils large and round ;
iris hazel ; feet and legs rather long and slender, yellow ;
claws horn-color, strongly hooked, and rather long ; head,
nape, back, outside of wings and wing coverts and tail dark
brown, almost black ; on head and upper part of back, chin,
cheeks, collar round neck, all under parts and thighs, and four
or five narrow bands on upper side, and six or seven on under
side, and lip of tail, white.
Total length 23 inches ; bill along ridge 1^ inches; same
along gape; nostril -f.j of an inch in diameter; wing from
flexure 10| inches; tarsus 31 inches; middle toe 2| inches,
of which I of an inch is claw; hind toe H inches, of which
1^ is claw ; tail 1 1 } inches, of twelve feathers, rounded ; first
primary shortest, fifth and sixth longest ; outer tail feathers
8 inches, middle lOJ inches.
Female. Much the same as male, white bands on tail broader.
Total length 25| inches; wing from flexure, 1-2 inches;
tarsus 3ff inches ; hind toe 2^ inches ; tail 12^ inches ; lateral
tail feathers lOg^ inches. Other dimensions in same pro-
portion.
CORVUS VOCIFERUS, Nobis. CLAMORors Crow.
I first saw these birds while residing in the ruins of Uxmal.
Each evening, just at sundown, I observed five or six, and
sometimes more, birds, whicli I knew, by their cry. must be-
long to the genus Corvus, though much louder, and more
disagreeable, than any jay that I had ever heard before. They
came and alighted, for a few minutes, on the branches of a
dry tree, which stood on the lower terrace of the Ca&a del
some Birds from Yucatan. 465
Gobernador ; but, before I could approach near enough to
shoot them, they flew off*, screaming, into the neighboring
woods. At last, I determined, one evening, to follow them
as long as I could see to shoot, and get a specimen, if possi-
ble. I accordingly did so, and succeeded, just at dusk, in
shooting a female, after which the flock never appeared again
in that neighborhood ; but, subsequently, I procured two
other specimens, both males, one near Yturbide, and the
other near Izamal. In both instances, they were procured
from small flocks of from six to a dozen. They are very
noisy and lively in their motions. Their food appears to
consist of the small fruits and insects. They have a most
peculiar formation in the trachea, being a membranous bag,
coming off* between the rings, about half way down, and inti-
mately connected with the skin of the neck, which, together
with the great muscularity of the larynx, may account for the
great loudness and harshness of their voice.
Male. Dark brown on head, chin, neck, back, and upper
part of tail ; a steel-gray spot on cheeks ; bill black ; iris
brown ; under parts and flanks white ; tail consists of twelve
feathers, all tipped, for about one third their length, with
white, except the central ones, which have merely a white
mark on each side the shaft, near the tip ; first primary
shortest, fifth longest ; nostrils rounded, partially covered with
bristly hairs.
Total length about 16 inches; bill 1^ inches along ridge,
and If along gape, ^ inch diameter at base ; tarsus If inches )
middle toe 1^ inches long; tail 7^ inches long.
Female. 15} inches long, has the brown lighter than in
the male/; bill yellow.
ORIOLUS MUSIC US. Singing Oriole. Nobis.
Of this beautiful bird, I procured three specimens in Yuca-
tan ; two males at Ticul, and one female at Macoba. I had
not much opportunity of observing their habits. Those
that I saw were high up among the branches of trees, and
called my attention by their charming song.
466 Descriptions and Habits of
Male, Head, neck, cheeks, breast, belly, rump, tertiaries,
and nearly the whole length of the two outer tail feathers, and
the lower part of the third, and sometimes a stripe on the
fourth, bright chrome yellow ; face, throat, primaries, seconda-
ries, back, and four, sometimes six, tail feathers, black ; legs
bluish ; bill black, except base of lower mandible, which is
bluish ; iris hazel.
Total length 9J inches ; tarsus 1 iV inches ; bill A of an
inch along gape, J along ridge ; tail 4s inches long, consists
of twelve feathers.
Female. Marked like male, but not so brilliant.
Total length 8J inches.
MOMOTUS YUCATACENSIS. Black-throated Motmot. Nobis.
This strikinc; and beautiful bird was found throucrhout
Yucatan, particularly about the ruined buildings. They ap-
pear to be of solitary iiabits. Although numbers of tiieni
were fre(jucntly seen near each otlier, yet it did not appear
to be from gregarious habits, but from the locality being
favorable to them. They generally, during the bright part
of the day, if undisturbed, keep in dark places, as in the
rooms of the ancient buildings, or in the thick underbrush of
the overgrown court-yards, and do not appear to see well in a
bright light. So much is this the case, that I caught one in
my hand, which appeared to be bewildered by the light.
Early in the morning, and in the dusk of the evening, they
appear quite brisk, and at their case. We found them in
great numbers about the ruins of Chichen Itza, the halls of
whose palaces and temples resounded continually to the mel-
ancholy croak of this strange bird. As one listens to it, and
sees the bird perched on some branch in one of the dark,
deserted court-yards, with its head drawn in, its tail drooping,
its plumage ruffled, and its large dark eye fixed upon him,
with a solemn, still expression, he might imagine it to be ani-
mated by the spirit of one of the Maya priests, who had come
there to mourn over the ruined temples and desecrated altars.
Male, Bill and legs nearly black ; eyes hazel ; top of liead^
some Birds from Yucatan. 467
upper part of back, rump, cheeks, breast, and sides of neck,
reddish green or olive. In middle of back is a spot of bay.
A stripe of very light blue, like some of the salts of copper,
passes from base of bill, along each side of head, almost to
nape. A black stripe extends under each eye to neck.
Another black stripe passes down middle of chin, to upper
part of breast, growing broader as it descends, and mixed
with light blue on chin, and bordered on each side with same
color. Abdomen, under tail coverts, and flanks, bright rufous ;
primaries and tail light green, changing to blue in some lights,
tipped, and more or less bordered, with black ; the expansion
at end of two middle tail feathers, about half bright pale
green, varying to blue, and the other half black.
Total length 15| inches ; hill 2^ inches along gape^ 1| along
ridge ; ^ inch broad, y"^ of an inch through at base. About
50 serrations can be counted on each edge of upper mandible,
and 32 on each edge of lower. A strongly -marked ridge runs
along roof of mouth, to within f of an inch of point of
bill. Tarsus | of an inch long; tail, consisting of 10 feath-
ers, is 8i inches long ; bare part of two central feathers is
about 2^ inches ; first primary shortest, fourth longest.
I might here observe, that, had I as much desire of creating
new genera and sub-genera as some of the ornithologists of
the present day, and thus making scientific classification a
study in itself, instead of an aid in the study of nature, I
might make a new sub-genus of this bird. Although, in all its
prominent markings and habits, it is properly a ^rotmot, yet
it has some striking diflferences in the form of the bill, (tc, as
will be seen on comparing the description of this bird with
the other species of Momotus. The female is like the male,
only smaller.
468 Recent freshwater Mollusca.
ART. XL. — ENUMERATION OF THE RECENT FRESHWATER MOL-
LUSCA WHICH ARE COMMON TO NORTH AMERICA AND EUROPE ;
WITH OBSERVATIONS ON SPECIES AND THEIR DISTRIBUTION. By
S. S. Haldemai?, Professor of Zoology in the Franklin Institute, Philadelphia.
1. Paludina vivipara, Lin.
2. P. fasciata, Midi, achatina, Lam.
3. Physa hypnorum, Lin. elongata, Say.
4. Limnea palustris, Mull, elodes, Say.
L. stagnalis ? Lin. jugularis, Say,
L. truncatulus, Midler,
5. Planorbis albus "
P. nitidus ? <^
6. Cyclas calyculata, Draparnaud.
7. Pisidium appendiculatum, Leach.
P. amnicum ? Midler.
8. Alasmodon margaritiferus, Lin.
Mr. James Sowerby catalogues several other European
freshwater species as found by Dr. Richardson, in the upper
Canadian lakes ; but I am unwilling to adopt these deter-
minations on the present occasion, except that of Pisidium
appendiculatum, which cannot well be mistaken for another
species, and which is mentioned as occurring from Lake
Superior to Saskatchewan.
It is difficult to determine the percentage of species com-
mon to the two continents, and tlie result will vary according
to the point in which the facts are viewed. Paludina vivipara
and fasciata, for example, appear to be the only European
members of the restricted genus, and arc found here, where
the species arc more multiplied. We count Unionidos and
Melaniadaj by the hundred, whilst the former family has but
few species, and the latter but two recorded recent Melania
in Europe.* Under these circumstances, I have deemed it
* I doubt much whether these will not be found, upon a closer scrutiny, to belong
to Melanopsis, which appears to be as essentially a European — as Melania is an
common to North America and Europe. 469
better to leave those families out of the question, which pre-|
sent great discrepancies, and base my conclusions upon the
genera nearly equally abundant in species upon both sides,
which will be found to be the case in the Physadse. Thus we
have about 50 species of Physa, Limnea, and Planorbis, of
which three, or 6 per cent, are European : but with Ancylus,
the number of Physadae is raised to 60, reducing the percent-
age to Jive. If we reject Ampullaria as a southern form not
admissible into the fauna of Europe, the remaining portions
of Lamarck's Peristomata will not cause the result to vary, so
that we may safely assume the last named number as indicat-
ing the proper proportion.
In preparing lists like the foregoing one, we are met by
several difficulties, the most important turning upon the iden-
tity or non-indentity of certain shells, apparently the same, but
found upon different continents ; with no apparent existing
means of traversing the intervening ocean. The question at
issue resolves itself into two propositions: 1. Animals occurring
in separate regions, which they could not have attained by
crossing the intermediate space, however much they may re-
semble each other, are distinct species.
2. vSimilar animals, under whatever circumstances they may
be found, constitute but one species.
At the very onset we are met by the question. What is a
species ? and sides will be taken according to the answer each
one is ready to adopt.* The definition of a species does not
American form. Some conchologists consider the two genera identical, an opinion
which the characters and geographical distribution will not justify, notwithstanding
the near alliance between some of the species. 31elanopsis is not an American
genus, the species referred to it by M. Deshayes, (Melania nupera Say,) constituting
with several others a distinct form, of which Lithasia geniculata Hald. is the type.
* " We have agreed that a species shall be that distinct form originally so created,
and producing, by certain laws of generation, others like itself. There is this incon-
venience attending the use of it by naturalists, that it assumes as a fact, that which^
in the present state of science, is in many cases a fit subject of inquiry ; namely,
that species, according to our definition, do exist throughout nature. It is too conve-
nient a term to be dispensed with, even as an assumption ; only care should he taken
that we do not accept the abstract term for the fact." Bichcno. Lin. Trans, xv, 4S2.
" There is no law whatever hitherto established, by which the limits of variation to a
given species can be satisfactorily assigned, and until some such law be discovered,
470 Recent freshwater Mollusca,
necessarily include descent from a single pair, because the
first male and the first female would, by the definition, be of
different species.* If we assume that geographical position
is of more value than specific character, it follows that we can-
not name Physa hypnorum, until we know the locality of the
specimen ; nor can it ever be ascertained whether this species
inhabits both continents, if the very enunciation of the fact
calls forth its denial.f Hence tables like that given become
useless to the geologist ; for should he have reason to infer
that certain regions were once united by a chain of islands,
for example, he will expect a certain community of animal
species ; but upon placing his specimens before a zoologist, he
is compelled to abandon his view by being informed that no
species is common to the two regions ; the assertion not being
founded upon the positive evidence furnished by the objects
themselves, but upon the mere opinion that they would have
been unable to traverse the intervening ocean. J
If the same species may inhabit distant regions, the fact
may be accounted for in several ways, as by
we cannot expect precision in the details of systematic botany." Prof. Heaslow,
Mag;. Zool. Bot. i. UG.
*See Mag. Nat. Hist. N. S. ii. 622. Will any one contend that when " grass "
was first created, the meadows remained barren until covered by multiplication from
a single plant ?
t In the same manner, if identity of species in the parents were a just deduction
from the occurrence of a prolific ofl'spring, the question touching prolific hybrids could
never be settled ; and if two precisely similar shells are pronounced distinct merely
because they are found in strata of very diflferent ages, we can never determine
whether a fossil species can occur in distinct formations. This point will be noticed
further on.
t The circumstances of the existence of dissimilar forms of a common type are
parallel to those of the (Ovis ammon) equally found identical or diflTerent in Asia,
Africa, and the islands of the Mediterranean, which existed anciently in Spain, and
at this moment is spread over a great part of western North America. In no case
are these animals suspected to have been transported by human intervention, and yet
they are located in some places where, without the aid of man, they cannot have mi-
grated, unless we admit of changes on the surface of the earth, since the present
zoology was in being, of such magnitude as to include the formation of the Mediter-
ranean— the separation of the British Islands from the continent of Europe — of the
Indian Islands from that of Asia — and the formation of a channel to cut America
from connection with the Old World. — Col. Hamilton Smith, Nat. Hist, of
Horses, p. 67.
common to North America and Europe. 471
1. Transportation.
2. Former connection of the regions.
3. Distribution from several original centres.
4. Transmutation.
Of these, the two first are the most obvious, but the third
requires to be admitted with great caution, in practice, at
least, if not in theory ; for, if we suppose that certain physical
conditions of the earth's surface require particular organic
forms to develop the great ends of creation, we may conceive
two distinct regions to exist, with physical characters so nearly
alike, as to be better suited for the habitation of some single
species than for two distinct ones ; and, in the production of
a new series of beings, after a geologic convulsion has swept
a multitude from existence, it is not impossible that certain
exterminated species may be revived, to demonstrate a partial
similarity between the two epochs, like that indicated by the
plentiful occurrence of genera, the identity of the members
of which we seldom have occasion to doubt. But, although
many animals are able to live under varying circumstances,
such a multitude of conditions are requisite to demand the
independent existence of the same species in the most distant
localities,^ that the probabilities against such an occurrence
cannot be less than the proportion of ten thousand to unity.
It remains to notice the hypothesis usually named after
Lamarck, certainly not because it owes its origin to him, but
doubtless on account of his lucid exposition of it. IMr. Lyell
gives a pretty full analysis of these views, for the purpose of
disproving them, and he has apparently succeeded in the at-
tempt ; but, as several zoological views have been advanced
since the publication of this philosopher's "Principles of
Geology," which tend to invalidate some of the arguments
brought forward, it is impossible to do justice to the hypothe-
sis in question without alluding to them. Thus the cat
mummies of Egypt were said to be indcntical with the mod-
* See Dr. Weissenbora's remarks, iq Charlcsworlh's Mag. Nat. Hist. ii. p. 623.
472 Recent freshioater Molliisca,
ern Felis domestica; and such was the general opinion, until
the discovery, by Dr. Rijppell, of the genuine analogue of the
embalmed species, in the Felis maniculata of Noubia. I be-
lieve Professor Bell to be correct in deciding that Felis domes-
tica can neither be referred to this species, nor to the Felis
catus found wild in the forests of Europe.* Again, great
stress has been laid upon the contrasts presented by the so
called varieties of the domestic dog ; but the hint given by
Pallas, that they are merely prolific hybrids,-)- accounts for the
variations in a much more satisfactory manner than to suppose
them identical with some single primary form. Col. Hamilton
Smith, in his valuable treatise on the Canida3, J has developed
these views in a masterly manner, and, at the same time, has
reduced the family to such perfect order, that I do not hesi-
tate to adopt his views. *§> The lamarckian hypothesis of
appetency, as he left it, seems clearly untenable, but, in a
modified form, affords room for further discussion. Thus it
appears impossible that a bird, with detached toes, should
ever acquire webbed feet by mere dint of swimming or desire
to swim ; but, as all animals are formed with a greater or less
approximation to certain models, why may not the germ which
would result in a swimming organ (as that to which the water
dogs owe their partially webbed feet) be present in a terres-
trial animal, just as the foetal brain is successively that of a
fish, reptile, and bird, before it is that of a perfect mammal ?
or as the mammary glands have been known to increase in
number, and to occur by deviation, in the inguinal region of
the human subject ?
* British Quadrupeds, p. 185.
+ Caldwell's Unity of the Human Race.
t Nat. Libr. See, also. Horses, p, 70, where he remarks, '•' It seems, therefore,
more consonant with the distribution of several genera of animals on the earth's
surface, to believe that osculating forms existed ab initia distinct, circumstanced to
accomplish certain ends, such as the service of man, and therefore framed so as to
render them fusible into one species." The same view had been previously taken by
Mr. Eyton, a British ornithologist, Mag. Nat. Hist. (N. S.) i. 359.
§ If these prevail among zoologists, it will be necessary for the pseudo-lamarckians
to remodel their arguments to some extent, as they will be reduced to such " facts "
as are given in the next note but one.
II In the eyeless fish and crustacean of the Kentucky cave, the germs of visual
organs must exist, and only require light to cause the ej'es themselves to appear ii>
common to North Aynerica and Europe. 473
Mr. Lvell endeavors to show that all our efforts to remove
a species from its type are successful only to acertain extent,
and that the maximum deviation is attainable in a iew gen-
erations.* The lamarckian contends that the lapse of time
and amount of physical revolution are not sufficient to cause
any appreciable difference between the embalmed Egyptian
remains and the forms now existing ; but we are at liberty to
step into the field of palaeontology, and here, at least, we
should be able to find proofs of a gradation of species, as I
believe Cuvier remarks. If this view is sustained by facts, it
becomes an important argument, and one which is generally
regarded as final ; but that it should not be received as abso-
lutely conclusive, I will endeavor to show.
Let us, for a moment, suppose a transmutation of species
possible, and then attempt to account for the asserted absence
of the intermediate links. In the first place, the ability to
produce these links would constitute the main ground, (the
possibility of hybridity being commonly overlooked) for prov-
ing the identity of the two previously-admitted species — a
mode now in use, and considered of great service, especially
when it is well understood that there are distinct species,
among the Unionidae, for example, actually differing less from
each other than the known varieties of certain variable spe-
cies,! which a lamarckian might suppose to be of so recent
an origin as not to have yet become settled in the possession
of their proper diagnostic characters.t Indeed, notwithstand-
due time. Some insects, which are usually apterous, acquire wings under certain
circumstances. Westwood's Introduction, ii. 468, 4S1.
* Entertaining the opinion that the color of the native American depends upon
climate, it was not unusual for authors of the last century to affirm that the descend-
ants of Europeans had already made some progress in a change of color, Azara
states that the Russians are black. Marco Polo affirms that some of the distant
Orientals had tails. Dr. Prichard asserts that the heads of the white race in the
West Indies approach those of the original natives in form, independently, as he
seems to suppose, of intermixture ; and that the climate of Virginia, which was
formerly said to darken the European, nov,,- bleaches the skin, and converts the wool
of the blacks into hair in a few generations, when they are kept in the families of
their employers, whilst the field laborers retain the original color.
t Mr. Lyell admits that, if this should be the case, it would have a tebdency to
cast an additional doubt upon the definite nature of species.
X See my Freshwater Univ. Mollusca. Plakokbis, p. 26.
53
474 Recent freshwater Molluscaj
ing the assumption to the contrary, by authors who have little
practical acquaintance with the details of natural history,* the
proper discrimination between species and variety is one of
the greatest difficulties which the naturalist has to encounter ;
and he who is successful in this department is entitled to a
rank which comparatively (ew can attain.f
In the second place, although we may not be able, artifi-
cially, to produce a change beyond a definite point, it would
be a hasty inference, to suppose that a physical agent, acting
gradually for ages, could not carry the variation a step or two
farther; so that, instead of the original, we will say four va-
rieties, they might amount to six, the sixth being sufficiently
unlike the earlier ones to induce a naturalist to consider it
distinct.! It will now have reached the limit of its ability
to exist as the former species, and must be ready either to
develop a dormant organic element, or die ; if the former is
effected, the osculating point is passed, and the species estab-
lished upon the few individuals that were able to survive the
shock. If the physical revolution supposed to be going for-
ward is arrested or recedes, the individuals which had not
passed the culminating point remain as a fifth variety, or re-
lapse towards their former station ; whilst the few which have
crossed the barrier remain permanently beyond it, even under
a partial retrogression of the causes to which they owed their
newly-developed organization. We may suppose some spe-
* This remark does not apply to Mr. Lyell, whose arguments indicate a knowl-
edge of the subject seldom apparent iu the writings of those to whom I allude
generally.
t " In very extensive genera, the distinctions of species are so minute, that it re-
quires the most practised eye to separate them ; and, indeed, there are some groups,
the species of which are so intricately blended together, that no two entomologists
are agreed as to their distinctness." — Westwood.
t This slight organic change might bring it sufficiently near a cognate species to
allow of the prodviction of a prolific hybrid, previously impossible; for, as Mr. Lyell
remarks, (Principles, ii. 372, London, 1837,) " Hybrids have sometimes proved pro-
lific, where the disparity was not too great." He asks, (p. 434) "if species in gen-
eral are of hybrid origin, where are the stocks which combine in themselves the
habits, properties, and organs, of which all the intervening species ought to afford
us mere, modifications?" An answer may be partly found in the complaint of
Professor Henslow, (Mag. Zool, Bot. i. 117,) that botanists describe certain species
as "duabus prioribus exacti intermedia."
common to North America and Europe. 475
cies and individuals to be more able to pass than others, and
that many become extinct, from inability to accomplish it.
Under this point of view, a hiatus, rather than a regular pas-
sage, is required between a species and that whence it is sup-
posed to be derived, just as two crystals may occur, nearly
identical in composition, but without an insensible gradation
of intermediate forms,* the laws, both of organic and inor-
ganic matter, requiring something definite ; whence the rarity
of hybrids and monsters, themselves subject to established
laws.
My meaning will, perhaps, be better understood by one or
two illustrations. We all know that marine and fluviatile
mollusca have their peculiar distinctive characters. Let us,
then, suppose a species of iMelania to inhabit a stream into
which a salt lake effects a discharge, the saline mixture
being, at first, so much diluted as not to occasion the animal
much inconvenience, until by the gradual enlargement of the
outlet of the lake, the amount of the foreign ingredient is so
much increased, that the mollusk finds great difficulty in liv-
ing, and must eventually perish, unless it can accommodate
itself to the saline medium. The form, however, not being
marine, the extreme case is presented, of a necessity to change
into a different genus — Fusus, for example. Now there is a
shell confined to the Holston River and its branches, which
is, to all appearance, a Fusus, so that Say, the leading Ameri-
can conchologist of his day, called it Fusus fluvialis. Accord-
ing to the lamarckian hypothesis, this mollusk may have de-
scended from individuals of the more widely-distributed and
nearly-allied Melania armigera, Say; and its transmutation
(though now a fluviatile species) may have been accomplished
by the agency of salt water. Now, although we will not
assert that the salt water they inhabit is the cause of the
si|)honal canal in a large proportion of marine univalves, or
even insist that the want of this medium has some connection
with its absence in the numerous freshwater species, we are
* The same mineral may crystallize with three, six, or twelve angles, but not with
five or seven. Are the phases of organic morphism subject to less definite laws ?
476 Recent freshwater Mollusca,
acquainted with, yet, when we find but a single ex'ception
among hundreds of species on both sides, I cannot think it
unimportant to inquire whether we are to consider it a mere
coincidence, that this anomalous Fusus fluviahs should occur
in a stream which rises in a salt region.
I have noticed, in another place, the great analogy existing
between the aquatic Paludina subcarinata and the terrestrial
genus Cyclostoma. In the former genus, the rim of the
aperture lies in close contact with the body of the shell, and
the opercle is composed of concentric elements, whilst, in the
latter, it has a tendency to disunion, and the opercle is con-
stantly subspiral. In the species in question, " we find a true
Paludina occasionally rounding its aperture, throwing it off
from the body whirl, and not only assuming the physiognomy
of Cyclostoma elegans, but actually departing so far from the
normal character of its genus, as to construct a cyclostomoidal
opercle, that of the young enlarging spirally. This, however,
does not continue ; the animal, as a Paludina, is not endowed
with the elements necessary to produce the entire opercle of
a Cyclostoma; so that, after continuing it to a certain point,
the layers become normal or concentric, apparently indicating
the impossibility of a departure from its generic type beyond
a certain limit." * When I detected this peculiarity, I consid-
ered it as affording an excellent illustration of the theory of
" representation ; " and, although I still entertain the same
opinion, I cannot close my eyes to the fact that representation
itself must take its place as an argument in favor of Lamarck's
views.
Some authors, having adopted certain views of species
and varieti s almost at random, and independently of zoologi-
cal or physiological considerations, call in the lamarckian prin-
ciple as far as their notions render its assistance necessary,
and chiefly that they may refer the members of the hu-
man race to one zoological species, whilst they will admit that
the American Vulpes fulvus is distinct from its European
* Freshwater Univalve Mollusca, Phvsad^, p. 17. It will be remembered that
Lamarck, at one period, confounded the genera Cyclostoma and Paludina,
common to North America and Europe. ATT
analogue. This brings us to a result published by a practi-
cal zoologist, our associate, Professor Samuel George Mor-
ton, well known by his researches in anthropology. Finding
it impossible to account for the variations in the races of
men on the grounds usually brought forward, he contends
that although they constitute one species, the five races were
endowed with distinctive characters ab initio.* This view
places a neutral ground between such as contend for the
unity of the human species, and those of a contrary opinion ;
and is of such a nature that both parties may occupy it with-
out compromising the conclusions each has respectively adopt-
ed. Yet it is only satisfactory in the study of the human
species, of which we have records and monuments of great
antiquity, for it is not very likely that naturalists will be ready
to admit that certain shells are referable to a single species,
although endowed with distinctive characters at the period of
their creation.
The hasty assertion has been sometimes made, that if trans-
mutation of species be possible, the study of natural history
becomes useless ; that is to say, a science is useless if its prin-
ciples militate against our view of that science, and Avena
sativa must not be studied by the botanist because it is assert-
ed to change into Secale cereale under peculiar circumstances.f
The lamarckian might with equal propriety insist that this
constitutes the chief inducement to study; that without it
every species would be isolated in creation ; that there would
be neither genus, order, nor family ; no relation between the
wings of a bird and the anterior limbs of a quadruped ; and
the seven cervical vertebrae, so constant in the mammalia, were
accident. He might consider his views as the foundation of
comparative anatomy, the key to the theories of representa-
tion and types, and the basis of the classification of organized
bodies. Nor could he perceive that the study of geoYo^y
would be affected by it to such a degree as to render the de-
ductions from organic remains less useful than under the sup-
*See Swainson's Geogr. of Animals, (Cab. Cyc.) p. 2.
t See Charlesworth's Mag. Nat. Hist. i. 574 and ii. 670.
478 Recent freshwater Molhisca^
position that species alone are permanent, whilst everything
else is subject to change ; for were they transmutable, it would
be in the course of the long periods, and during the progress
of the important changes which the geologist notes ; so that
whether these fragments be regarded as formerly identical,
but at present distinct from existing forms, or as distinct at all
times, the general result and its applications remain undis-
turbed.
Mr. Lyell lays great stress (vol. ii. p. 369) upon the fact
that Lamarck does not cite the appearance of any new or-
gan^ but I have endeavored to show, that the theory is not
dependent upon the production of any organ not already ex-
isting in an undeveloped state. His remarks against appe-
tency are well directed ; but the idea, in the extent to which
it has been carried, should be discarded as more detrimental
than useful to those who maintain the instability of species ;
because whilst its connection with the subject is very slight,
the discussion of it has a tendency to turn the unthinking in-
quirer aside from the true and philosophical basis of this im-
portant question, leading him to believe that if appetency
be disproved, transmutation falls with it. The objection
(p. 375) that numerous links in the animal series are wanting,
has not much force, as there are many causes to remove
them, or prevent them from becoming permanently estab-
lished ; and the original creation may have included a mul-
titude of beings of all classes. Moreover, the species of the
vertebrata and articulata may be comparatively stationary,
and the molluscous division peculiarly liable to transmutation
and hybridity. The reason why the lower orders still exist,
is to be looked for in the fact that they are fitted for the cir-
cumstances under which we find them. The researches of
Professor Forbes, in the Grecian archipelago, prove that whilst
some species are gradually verging towards extinction, oth-
ers, belonging to a more recent period, are gradually increas-
ing in numbers.
I pretend not to ofTer an opinion for or against the
lamarckian hypothesis, being more anxious to show the in-
cominon to North America and Europe. 479
sufficiency of the standing arguments against it, and the
necessity of a thorough revision of them, than to take a
decided stand (upon a question which I regard as open to
further discussion) before its facts have been carefully ob-
served, or the resulting generalizations properly deduced ; so
that, whether it be admitted or not, it is entitled to the benefit
of all the discoveries which can be brought to bear upon it;
and, on this account, I have not hesitated to give a slight
sketch of the theory of transmutation, as I conceive it to be
modified by some of the results of modern science.*
I had intended to prepare a list of insects common to
Europe and North America, to be presented on the present
occasion ; but, as our collections are not in a condition to ad-
mit of such an undertaking, and as such a list would have
contained the names of a number of species which have
probably been introduced through human intervention, (as
Bruchus pisi or Dermestes lardarius) I resolved to take some
family of nearly equal distribution upon both continents, and
which had been pretty thoroughly studied. For this purpose,
I have chosen the Brachelyira, most of the species of which
are small, and of such habits as to prevent them from being
readily introduced artificially.
Of this family, Erichson, the highest authority, enumerates
220 North American (exclusive of Mexican) species, of which
12, or five and half per cent., inhabit Europe. But recent
discoveries raise our species to 250, of which none of the
additional ones have been identified as European, (perhaps
from inability to institute comparisons) ; on the strength of
which, we may reduce the percentage io Jive, when a remark-
able coincidence is apparent with that already assigned to tlie
Physadse. Of the genus Philonthus, 22 American species
* These views have been held by men of learning and piety at various times.
Thus Ray and Swammerdam believed that the parasitic hymenoptera, to which a
dead caterpillar apparently gives birth, may result from the division of its vitality
into numerous portions, and no one finds fault with the "evil tendency "or "ab-
surdity " of the idea. Now, the objection appears to rest not so much against the
opinion as the source whence it comes; in other words, Ray was an Englishman,
whilst Larnarck was a Frenchman.
V
V
480 Recent freshwater 3Iolliisca,
are enumerated, (or 33, including Mexico,) of which no less
than eight occur in Europe ; and, of these eight, common
to Europe and North America, but one has been detected in
the West Indies. Erichson cites three species of Brachelytra,
common to Europe, Asia, and America ; another, as common
to these countries and South Africa ; three, as found in Europe
and South America ; and but a single species as appertaining
to both divisions of the American continent.* The last fact
is a curious one, and shows how very distinct the faunas of
approximate regions may be. The author, to whom I have
just alluded, remarks that northern species may be found in
the mountains of temperate regions,! and cites Tachinus
elongatus as occurring in Sweden, Unalashka, and the moun-
tains of Switzerland.
Mr. Westwood states that a large species of Cybister (an
aquatic coleopter) occurs at Senegal, Guinea, Cape Good
Hope, Madagascar, Mauritius, and in the Indian archipelago ;
and Mr. Kirby, that Sphodrus terricola inhabits Great Britain
and Valparaiso,! Carabus vietinghovii, Siberia and America,
and a species of Isopleurus, India and the Rocky Mountains. <§>
M. Laporte affirms || that Nogrus griseus is found in the four
quarters of the globe ; and M. Guerin IVIenevilie, that a crus-
tacean, (Pontonia custos) found parasitic in bivalve shells at
Rio Janeiro, is identical with individuals from the Morea.
Probably Libiniacana, liculata Say, and certainly Cancer irro-
ratus. Say, inhabit the Atlantic and Pacific coasts of North
America ; H and, according to Professor Ehrenberg,** two
thirds of the microscopic protozoa hitherto detected on our
continent, inhabit Europe also.
Of the species indicated in the list at the head of this
paper, Paludina vivipara is found in Ireland, England, Swe-
den, Germany, and Sicily ; Physa hypnorum in the same,
N
* North and South America present us with entirely distinct groups of many-
animals, as in the order Rodent ia.
t See Dr. Pickering's botanical map, in the Amer. Phil. Trans., vol. iv.
t Bridgw. Tr., Am. ed., p. 29. § lb. p. 494, note.
II Ann. Ent. Soc. Fr. i. 397. IT Journ. Acad. N. S. viii. 106, 116.
* * Am. Journ. Sci. xlvi. 309.
common to North America and Europe. 481
except Sicily ; Pisidium appendiculatum in England and
Sweden ; and Limnea palustris in Ireland, England, Scot-
land, Mona, Germany, Sv^eden, and Corsica.*
After the authorities I have cited in favor of a community
of species between distant regions, I think it indicates a con-
siderable degree of boldness to deny the identity of objects
never seen, on the strength of a preconceived opinion, which,
if true, (and I am far from making the remark as argument
against it) v/ill destroy much of the interest with which
geographic zoology and botany are invested, and originate a
more untenable theory than that of appetency ; for, according
to the latter, after a fish would have become a bird, it would
be a bird ; but, according to the former, it would still be a
fish;-|- Cynthia cardui would be from three to seven species,
according to the extent of country required to constitute a
zoological region, as it inhabits North America, South Amer-
ica, Europe, Northern, Western, and Southern Africa, the
Islands of Madagascar and Bourbon, Bengal, China, Java,
and Australia ; and Colias edusa, another frail butterfly,
would, in like manner, become four species, on account of
its occurrence in North America, Europe, Caffraria, and Nipal.
In connection with this subject, I wish to protest against
the practice of making distinct species of similar organic re-
mains, merely because they are found in different strata or
formations — a proceeding which must end in the admission
that a genus can contain more species than distinct forms,
(which involves a contradiction) and, indeed, an infinite
number of species. There must, however, be a limit to spe-
cies, and the limit must vary with the genera ; because an
insect, having more organs than a worm, affords a greater
* Grav's Turton, p. 30. Mr. Lea has a beautiful and extensive series of Alasmo-
don margariliferus, from various parts of Europe and America, including Columbia
River.
t Tbi? inference is fairly deducible from the writings of Dr. Prichard, and others
of the same school, some of whom are continually making attacks upon Lamarck,
for the general or uncritical reader, in a manner ingeniously calculated to keep the
merits of the question out of view. It is a matter of congratulation to the friends
of the French philosopher, that he never produced anything approaching this in
absurdity.
54
482 Recent freshwater Mollusca
number of distinguishing points. Moreover, whilst we admit
that there may be 500 species of HeHx, we cannot allow the
possibility of 200 Ancylus, with the usual amount of character,
because the shell is of the most simple form, and deprived
of a number of parts and modifications which afford good
specific characters in the former genus. It may, indeed, be
insisted, that, for all we know to the contrary, one, two, or
fifty, species of Ancylus may be hidden under each distinct
form, and that, in this manner, there may be as many Ancylus
as Helix. To assert that two monomorphic animals, belong-
ing to one of the families having uniform tints, are distinct,
because, if we could metamorphose them into members of
another family, having varying colors, the tints of the two
(not being subject to the law of uniformity) might present
a specific* variation, is to imagine an organic iso-morphismf
of which we have hitherto had no evidence. Admitting,
however, that, in an imaginary metamorphosis, two individu-
als (none of which are absolutely alike in every point) of a
species of Melania, should result in two distinct species of
Conus, of different markings and colors, I conceive that we
would not be justified, either in assuming the specific difTer-
ence of the former, or the identity of the latter, which we
derive from them ; because, although, as Conus, they would
be distinct from the possession of a different modification of
character, as Melania, they must be alike, the characters being
identical. Let us now suppose our metamorphosis to take
the opposite direction, the subjects being two species of Helix
of the same size, form, color, and texture, of shell and ani-
* " Specific, that makes a thing of the species of which it is ; designating the
peculiar properly or properties of a thing, which constitute its species, and distin-
guiah it from other things. Specific chak acter, a circumstance or circumstances
distinguishing one species from every other species of the same genus." — Web-
ster's Diet. It is evident, from these definitions, that, where there is no specific
character, there can be no distinct species ; so that, to prevent confusion, it will be
necessary for those whose views I am opposing, to adopt some other term, instead
of species, to designate wliat they contend for.
t This term may be introduced into zoology to indicate the resemblance which
a parasitic insect bears to another, into whose nest it must be able to penetrate un-
observed.
common to North America and Europe. 483
mal ; one with a columellar fold, a thickened outer Hp, armed
with teeth, and a wide umbilical depression ; the other with-
out a thickened lip, teeth, fold, or depression. In converting
these dissimilar shells into Ancylus, they must produce but
one species, notwithstanding the extent of their disagreement,
because the latter genus never has a thickened lip nor teeth,
and cannot possibly have the remaining characters which
Helix presents. The same reasoning has a bearing upon
higher divisions, and prevents us from setting aside a genus
like Helicina, because there cannot be a corresponding genus
allied to Patella; and it is fatal to the quinary, or any other
numerical arrangement, because, in proportion to the simplici-
ty of the form, and the reduction of the organs, must the
number of groups and aggregates diminish, of whatever value
or denomination they may be.* It appears needless to assert
that the absence of characters upon which generic and spe-
cific distinction would depend, renders two forms identical ;
as, in natural history, we cannot admit ''a distinction without
a difference."
I am aware that species from distant localities, long con-
founded, have eventually been found to present distinctive
characters ; but, whilst this ought to teach us caution, it
should not lead us to pronounce all such objects distinct, until
similar diagnostic characters be detected, or we adopt a rule
in the one case which we reject in the other ; namely, that
objects are distinct which appear identical, under the operation
of a peculiar law% only when remote localities are concerned,
which exerts no influence upon animals of the same region.
Thus, if Cicada septendecim were to occur in Australia, it
would be considered a distinct species, whilst the seventeen
broods of our own coimtry constitute but one ; although it
admits of a doubt whether all are the descendants of a sini^le
pair. The same remark will probably apply to all the species
of this genus, the period required to bring them to maturity
being unknown. Moreover, the very fact of a species living
* This idea is borne out by the fact that an ornithologist is the prbposer of the
quinarj-, and an cnlomologist of the septenary arrangement.
484 Recent freshicater Molhisca, 6^c.
under modified habits, in distant localities, may produce a
variation which, under the circumstances, would be consid-
ered specific, no intervening links being possible ; so that,
after all, such species may be founded upon quasi characters,*
just as two mollusks have been described under separate
names, because one lives in rough water, and has a strong
shell, and the other in smooth water, with a thin shell, when
the varying texture of the shells has depended upon the local-
ity.! Now, as most of the species named in my list do not
present appreciable distinctions, although found in regions
widely separated, it remains for those who contend that local-
ities indicate species, to inform us how far west of its present
position Ireland should have been placed, to induce them to
believe its Paludina vivipara another species ; and, in case
this island were to occupy the middle of the Atlantic, whether
the analogous shell should be considered as appertaining to
the American, the European, or to an entirely distinct species.
The same question might be raised with respect to Rhinoceros
sondiacus, found equally in Sumatra and Java ; and Elephas
maximus, because it inhabits some of the Asiatic islands, as
well as the continent. Mr. Jenyns is inclined to doubt the
validity of " many of the species found in distant latitudes,
which, although presenting the closest affinity to some in
Europe, have been considered distinct by naturalists, princi-
pally on the ground of their inhabiting such different geograph-
ical positions." — Mag. Zool. Bot., i. 25.
* They may be what Dr. Engelmann calls geographical varieties, " where no spe-
cific distinction can he discovered between the natives of both continents, but where
the American and European variety can always be distinguished by some points of
minor importance.'' — Am. J. Sci., vol. xlvi. p. 94. According to the same botanist,
ten out of twelve American species of Equisetum are found in Europe. — lb. p. 81.
t " We often regard a different habitation as a proof of a difference in species,
while it may be the cause of the variation." — Gray's Turton, p. 240. Sciylegel, a
German herpetologist, after stating his belief that the American Rana halecina and
sylvatica are identical with European species, remarks that it is "d"un intcret infini-
ment plus puissant, de savoir que nos deux especes de grenouilles communes d'Eu-
rope sont repandues a pen pres sur le meme degrc de latitude dans tout I'hemisphere
boreal, et quelles presenlent dans des contrees aussi distantes et de nature diverse,
comme le sont I'Europe, le nord de I'Afrique, TAsie temperee, le Yapon et I'Ameri-
que septentrionale dcs differences si pen notables, que les naturalistes auront de la
peine k les signaler, et qu'ils ne viendront pas a bout d'en enumerer de constantes."
— Revue Zool., 1838, p. 321.
Notices of the Land Shells of Cuba. 4S5
ART. XLL — DESCRIPTIONS AXD NOTICES OF SOME OF THE LAND
SHELLS OF CUBA. By A. A. Gould, M. D.
Within the last two years, I have received several par-
cels of shells, many of them containing the living animal,
collected by Mr. John Bartlett, on the island of Cuba, near
Matanzas, accompanied by careful memoranda of the habits
and stations of the animals. A few of them were briefly
noticed on the cover of the first number of the present vol-
ume ; most of these I have since ascertained to have been
described by Dr. Pfeiffer, in " Wiegmann's Archiv fur Natur-
geschichte," for 1839-40, a work which had not then
reached this country. As however, the study of concho-
logy no longer consists in observing the external config-
uration and marking of shells, but embraces the study of
the animals producing them also, it may not be amiss if I give
a list of the shells, with such observations as were noted by
]Mr. Bartlett, and such as I have made upon the animals
which reached me alive ; all that relates to them as existing
in Cuba, is, of course, derived from him.
The principal localities mentioned are La Carolina, Retiro,
Mount Vernon, St. Cecilia, and Santa Ana, which are coflfee
estates, (cafetales) in the district of Sumidero, and in the
neighborhood of Coliseo post office, a distance of twenty to
twenty-five miles south east of Matanzas. San Jorge is a
sugar plantation on Sagua la Grande river, about one hun-
dred and fifty miles east of Matanzas.
Coffee trees are planted about six feet apart, and on a
portion of most estates plantain trees grow in the spaces.
When too exuberant manv of the smaller ones are cut down,
and when the fruit is mature the old trees are cut close to
the ground ; being full of sap they moisten the earth where
they lie. Under these are found some of the Helices, and
most of Helicina and Glandina, attracted, no doubt, by tiie
shelter and moisture thus aflforded.
486 Descriptions and Notices of
Helix auricoma, Fer., Hist, dcs Moll., plate 4.6, fig. 7
to 9. Prodr. No. 80.
There is mucli variation in the color of the animal. In
some it is reddish brown, in others slate-color. Of two
specimens found in contact, one was light reddish brown on
the sides, and dark brown on the back and tentacles. The
other was slate-colored, dark on back and tentacles, and
lighter at sides. It was never seen upon trees, nor upon a
log, not even in the wet season ; but a specimen left at lib-
erty crawled to the top of the room in the night, and remain-
ed fixed there until dislodged.
It is found on the coffee plantations under plantain leaves ;
in the woods on the limestone knobs, among stones and
under leaves, close upon the ground. In the dry months
it forms a calcareous epiphragm over the aperture, and this
is the only species which was observed to form a covering of
similar material.
Found in plenty on the La Carolina and Retiro estates,
and in the immediate vicinity of Matanzas. In the latter
locality many dead ones were found in wild shrubbery,
among rocks, near salt water, occupied by hermit crabs.
They were smaller than those found in the interior. The
variety brought from the region of St. Jago de Cuba is also
small, solid, coarsely wrinkled, and somewhat distorted by the
pursing in of the aperture. It is probably this variety to
which Lamarck applied the term H. microstoma.
Heltx Bonplandti, Lam. ; Feruss., Hist, des Moll., plate
46 A. fig. 2.
Animal, dark slate-color, long, and finely granulated^; lives
upon trees, and is rather rare and difficult to be obtained.
Found at La Carolina, St. Cecilia, Retiro, and near Matanzas
in September and March. Fine, fresh speciniens are dark
brown, and individuals vary much in the elevation of the
spire.
some of the Land Shells of Cuba. 487
Helix multistriata, Desh. ; Encyc. Meth. Vers. ii. 248.
H. circunitexta, Feruss., Hist, des Moll, plate 27 A. fig. 4, 5, 6.
Animal, dark brown, with three black longitudinal stripes.
It is rarely obtained alive. Most of the specimens were
found under decayed leaves in the woods, on the limestone
knobs, among stones, in the autumn. Collected at La Caro-
lina and •Mount Vernon.
Helix Poeyi, Petit; GuerirCs Mag. de Zool. 1836. plate
74.
Two or three found about Sagua la Grande.
Helix gilvus, Fer., Hist, des Moll., plate 21 B. fig. 1.
This shell, which I described under the name of H. peni-
cillata, is pronounced by high authority to be the immature of
H. gilvus. Mr. B. says, however, that he has collected them
at all seasons of the year, and has never seen them exhibiting
marks of further maturity.
The animal is of a light drab color ; a delicate, dusky,
fawn-colored median line, and a similar one along each ten-
tacle, extending backwards. Below this, on each side, is a
more delicate line, extending still further backwards. Neck
finely granulated.
Found plentifully on shrubs in a pasture, where they were,
of course, much exposed to the sun, at La Carolina.
Helix cubensis, Pfeif. ; Weigm. Archiv, 1839-40. H.
Lanieriana, D'Orb. ; Moll, de Cuba, plate 7, fig. 7.
The shell I have in view accords accurately with Pfeif-
fer's description, and is unquestionably the shell figured in
Sagra's work. Mr. Bartlett, however, with apparent good
reason, regards it as merely a variety of the preceding species,
H. gilvus. His description of the animal is as follows :
" tentacles, dark slate-color, body nearly white, with a dull
slate-colored line each side, and another on the back." This
agrees very closely, with my description of H. gilvus ; and
488 Descriptio7is and Notices of
having also seen the animal, I have detected no difference.
The following are extracts from his notes: '• Feb. 1843. I
find on the bushes, on the side hill above the fort (Matanzas)
some of this species. They are not so well marked as those
found in the interior ; these are a dun or cream-color, the
bands and cross markings in most specimens quite obscure."
Again, " these shells have no transverse marks like those
found on the Carolina, but are evidently the same species.
These are of various colors, some ashy-white, others dun ;
some have two obscure brown bands on the body whorl,
while on others the bands are quite distinct."
Helix fragilis, Pfeif. ; JViegm. Archiv, 1839-40.
These appear somewhat immature, though they were found
dead. They resemble the young of H. auricoma and H.
Bon2)Iandn, but are much more rough " like a file."
Found in the woods under leaves, and among stones on the
limestone knobs, on the Carolina, Retiro, and Mt. Vernon
estates.
Helix Boothiana, Pfeif. ; Wiegm. Archiv, 1840.
Helix Ottonis, Pfeif. ; Wiegm. Archiv, 1839.
Helix saxicola, Pfeif. ; JViegm. Archiv, 1839.
Found on trees, in the crevices of the bark, at La Carolina.
Helix septemvolva, Say. Near Matanzas.
Helix Ramonis, D'Orb., 3IoIL de Cuba, plate viii. fig. 1-4.
Animal, light horn-colored, with two darker lines behind
tentacles. These are short, black, somewhat dilated near
base ; back beautifully granulated. V
This belongs to the group named Polygyra by Say, and
somewhat resembles H. septemvolva. Perhaps the peculiar
form of the tentacles will be found constant in all species of
the group.
Found near Matanzas.
some of the Land Shells of Cuba. 489
AcHATiNA FASCiATA, Mull., A. vexillum, Brug.
Sometimes found in the woods high on the trees, but most
abundant, on abandoned coffee plantations. In dry weather
they attach themselves to the body and largest limbs of the
coffee trees so strongly that, in detaching them, the bark
comes off with them. They form a strong parchment film
over the aperture during the dry season. '•' None of these
were found on the square of coffee with the green-banded
ones ; (var. crenata, Swains.) but on another square, not a
quarter of a mile distant, there were plenty of this kind. On
this square the coffee trees were not so old, and were more
shaded. A few green-banded ones were found here also, but
not one in twentv."
A few seen at Sagua were all of the spotted kind.
AcHATiNA GRAciLLiMA, Pfcif., WiegM. Archiv, 1840.
AcHATiNA ocTONA, Chem.
Animal, bright yellow, half the length of the shell. Found
at La Carolina, under a heap of old corn husks, so plenti-
fully that hundreds could be collected in a few minutes.
Glandina oleacea, Feruss., Prodr. No. 360.
" Animal, light reddish brown, with three dark stripes on
the back and sides. It has six tentacles, the posteHor pair is
longest ; the anterior ones are joined at the base, tapering to
a point, in shape like a shark's tooth ; the others terminate
bluntly with knobs, &c." The third or anterior tentacles are
merely dilatations of the angles of the hood, which, however,
serve the purpose of tentacles. The animal accords generally
with that of G. truncata, described by Dr. Wyman at page 416.
They are not plentiful, but are occasionally found under
fallen plantain trees, and under leaves in the woods, under
decayed wood, &-c.
Glandina folliculus, Lam., Achatina solidula, Pfeif.
More rare, but found in the same localities as G. oleacea.
55
490 Descriptions and Notices of
Pupa unicarinata, Lam., Bulimus Canimensis, Pfeif.,
Archiv, 1839.
Found on a small limestone knob on the Retiro, some in
the woods and others on the side hill.
Pupa servilis, Gould. See page, 356.
Pupa contracta. Say.
Pupa chrysalis, Fer.
The animal is light greyish, the anterior tentacles very small ;
motions very sluggish. Found on the rocks on one side of
Matanzas harbor, within reach of the spray, in company with
Littorina angulifera, lineata, &c. Others of a much more stint-
ed growth were found farther inland. When at rest, they
secure the aperture by a firm, membranous epiphragm.
An entire revision of the large West India species of Pupa
is requisite. They appear to have been but httle studied ;
and the descriptions given are very indefinite. The above
species, for instance, might be referred, with almost equal
propriety, either to P. uva^ P. chrysalis, P. maritima, Pfeif ,
and the small variety to P. miimioh, Pfeif. That varieties are
broad and numerous does not admit of doubt.
Pupa (Cylindrella) elegans, Pfeif, Wiegm. Archiv, 1840.
Pupa (Siphonostoma) lituus, Gould.
Animal, nearly white, with a slight tinge of slate color
above. The foot is very short, blunt behind, and in all re-
spects like that of Pupa chrysalis. If it proves to belong to
a new genus, the name Siphonostoma, (originally Brachypus,
Guilding, Zool. Journ. iv. 167,) will have precedence over
that of Cylindrella, Pfeiffer.
Pupa (Siphonostoma) porrecta, Gould. Plate xxiv. fig. 12.
Testfi gracillimd, fusiformi, glabr&, pellucidA, maculis albis, subquadratis,
obscure tessellatis : anfr. ad 24, ultimo disjuncto et vald6 porrecto :
aperturS. campanulatd, subquadrata ; peristomate albo, reflexo.
some of the Land Shells of Ciiha. 491
Shell very slender and delicate, fusiform, translucent, some-
what enlarged at tip ; surface faintly tessellated with subquad-
rate spots of opaque white : whorls about twenty-four, about
eight of which are usually broken from the summit ; the
others are very slightly convex, smooth ; the last whorl is dis-
joined from the penultimate, and stretched out so as to take
nearh the direction of the axis of the shell, and to brins: the
plane of the aperture nearly at right angles with it ; this last
whorl is also covered with minute, close-set ribs ; aperture
circular, with the peristome broadly and roundly everted.
Length, } inch ; breadth, tJ^t inch.
This is the most interesting of the group to which it belongs.
There is probably no land shell so slender, and made up of so
many whorls. In fresh specimens it is beautifully flecked
with spots of opaque white. It is most nearly allied to Cy-
lind. crispula, Pfeiffer. Found at the Retiro, at the edge of
woods, on a limestone knob, under a shelving rock.
Pupa (Siphonostoma) lactaria, Gould. Plate xxiv. fig. 13.
Testa fusiformi, apice truncatd, tenui, albida, sursum fuscescente, rivulis
lacteis longitudinaliter undique notata : anfr. superstitibus 10, convexiusculis,
concinne striatis ; ultimo carinato ; apertura circular!, amplo, expanse j
peristomate albo, modice everso : collo brevi.
Shell fusiform, truncated at tip, thin and translucent, yel-
lowish white, becoming dusky towards apex, and variegated
with flexuous, milk-white, longitudinal lines. Remaining
whorls about ten, slightly convex, elegantly sculptured by
delicate, oblique, longitudinal striae, of a uniform size on all
the whorls ; the last whorl has a distinct keel skirting the re-
gion of the umbilicus.
Separation of the last whorl short, forming a large, rounded,
trumpet-shaped aperture, turning outwards to form a narrow,
white lip. The aperture stands at an angle of 45° with the
axis of the shell. Length, f inch ; breadth, 5^7 inch.
In shape this species resembles C. clegans, Pf. ; though more
nearly like Clausilia siibida 1 Ferus. in size and sculpture, but
it is more ventricose, has fewer whorls, a shorter neck, larger
aperture, and less broadly reflected lip.
492 Descriptions and Notices of
Animal, white, with a dark line along the back of each
tentacle, one along middle of back, and a very fine one along
each cheek.
Found in March, near Matanzas.
Pupa (Siphonostoma) subula ? Ferus., Prodr. No. 508.
Hist, des Moll, plate 163, fig. 8.
I am not quite sure that this is Ferussac's species, but it
must be very near it. The animal is a little rusty above, with
a pale slaty line along each tentacle.
Found near Matanzas.
Pupa (Cylindrella) crispula, Pfeif., Wiegm. Archiv.
Found under a high precipice of limestone, near Chapeau's
Cave, on Mount Vernon estate,
Helicina suBMARGiNATA, Gray, Zool. Journal, i. 68. Plate
6, fig. 2. Sowerhy Thesaur. Conchyl. No. 10, plate 3, fig. 123,
137. H. rubra, Pfeif. H. crassa, D'Orb. Moll, de Cuba, p. 243.
Animal, entirely greenish black above, dusky beneath,
length about one diameter of the shell, surface finely reticula-
ted. Motions very sluggish. All the specimens procured
alive were found buried an inch or two deep, under decayed
plantain trees, at the Retiro, or in the vicinity of large rocks.
Helicina Sagra, D'Orb., Moll, de Cuba, p. 240. Sow-
erby, Thes. Conchyl. plate 1, fig. 10; plate 3, fig. 126.
Animal similar to that of H. suhmarginata, but was found
in dry, open fields near Matanzas.
Helicina pulcherrima, Lea, Amer. Philos. Tran^. ; Sowb.
Thes. Conchyl. No. 16, plate 3, fig. 112, 113.
The three last species vary somewhat in form and size, but
more especially in the color of the aperture. In the first it is
dark livid ; in the second, bright lemon color, and in the last,
white. Between the animals of the two first, I could make
out no appreciable difference. It is most probable that they
are only local varieties of the same species.
some of the Land Shells of Cuba. 493
Helicina adspersa, Pfeif., Wiegm. Archiv, 1S39. Sovvb.,
Thes. Conchijl plate 3, fig. 103, 115, 124, 125. H. variega-
ta, D-Orb., Moll de Cuba, plate 242.
Animal, when extended, one and a half diameters of the
shell ; tentacles, very long and slender ; foot, drab colored ;
head, tentacles, eyes, and a linear spot on the median line of
tail greenish black ; lip, paler. The proportion of dark and
light color, variable. iMotions unusually brisk, nearly as much
so as those of a Cyclostoma, and the animal is apparently
much less timid. Found under leaves, and adhering high up
the side of the precipice, near Chapeau's Cave, and never un-
der ground like the other species. " Some are bright yellow
without markings, others plain white, and then again with a
white ground and beautifully marked."
Helicina globulosa, DOrb. Moll, de Cuba, p. 294.
Sowb. Thes. Conchyl. plate 3, fig. 127, 128.
Animal, nearly white, tentacles dark. Found on La Caro-
lina and Retiro, under leaves at the margin of woods.
Helicina nitida, Pfeif., JViegm. Archiv, 1839. Sovvb.
Thesaur. Conchyl. No. 68, plate 3, fig. 16. H. glabra, Gould.
La Carolina, St. Ana, Retiro, and Mt. Vernon.
Helicina rugosa, Pfeif., Wiegm. Archiv, 1839. Sowb.
Thesaur. Conchyl. No. 72, plate 3, fig. 132.
On the ground, among plantain trees, at Sagua la Grande.
Helicina hispida, Pfeif., Wiegm. Archiv, 1839. Sovvb.
Thesaur. Conchyl. No. 16, plate 3, fig. 112, 113.
La Carolina, Retiro, and Mt. Vernon estates ; found just un-
der leaves, in the woods, on the limestone knobs.
Helicina RUPESTRis, Pfeif., Wiegm. Archiv, \SZ9. Sovvb.
Thesaur. Conchyl. No. 46, plate 3, fig. 120.
Found at Retiro and Mt. Vernon estates, on side hills,
among limestone rocks, under leaves.
494 Descriptions and Notices of
Cyclostoma auriculatum, D'Orb., Sovvb., Thesaur. Con-
chyl. No. 171, plate 31, fig. 277. C. bicolor, Gould.
Animal, small, of a cartilaginous color and aspect ; the ten-
tacles, bright scarlet ; very sluggish.
Found on La Carolina, St. Ana, Retiro, and Mt. Vernon
estates, in the woods and among recently planted coffee trees.
Mr. Sowerby regards specimens which I sent him, as be-
longing to this species. But I certainly never saw any with
an aperture resembling his figure. It more nearly resembles
his fig. ISl, which he calls a variety of C. tortum. I rest for
the present, however, on his authority.
Cyclostoma Sagra, D'Orb. Mo//. Je Caha ; Sowb., Thesaur.
Conchyl No. 166, fig. 279, 128. C. pictum, Pfeif. C. ma-
hogani, Gould.
Animal, light dove color, smooth above, granulated at
sides ; tentacles, ferruginous ; very active. This shell appears
to vary much in size and form. Some are nearly cylindrical,
while others are ventricose. Some specimens from Sagua la
Grande are much larger than any I have seen figured or de-
scribed. '' They are widely diffused over all parts of the
island I have visited. I do not think they climb trees, and
have found them mostly about stones." The motions of the
animal are so rapid that it seems almost to jump along.
Cyclostoma interruptum. Sowb., Thesaur. Conchyl.
No. 141, fig. 150, 151. C. catenatum, Gould.
I was deceived in this shell by its aspect of maturity when
possessed of only its single lip ; which was the case with all
the specimens collected for two years. Animal, light pea-
green, neck reddish, tentacles bright ferruginous, nearly car-
mine. When in rapid motion, "instead of proceeding direct-
ly ahead, with the shell steady, it rests the shell on the ground
until the body is extended as far as the shell will permit with-
out dragging, then by a sudden jerk throws the shell forward,
and so on alternately, much more rapidly than one would
some of the Land Shells of Cuba. 495
suppose possible. First one side of the animal moves and
then the other, like an elephant."
Found in holes in the rocks, under stones, in the woods, on
the hills, and in the same localities as C. Sagra.
Cyclostoma rugulosum, Pfeif., TViegm. Archiv ; Sowb.,
Thesaur. Conchyl. No. 155, fig. 166, 167. C. clathratum,
Gould.
Animal, nearly colorless or tinged with violet ; neck,
orange ; tentacles short, lemon-colored.
Found at La Carolina in the pastures under stones, or un-
der ground by the side of stones. Thousands of dead ones
are found in the hollows of the rocks.
Cyclostoma Candeanum, D'Orb. ; Sowb., Thesaur. Con-
chyl No. 151, fig. 283,284.
Animal, emerald green ; eyes black, surrounded by straw
color ; tentacles, green, darkest at tip ; lip, light watery green.
About Matanzas.
Cyclostoma Auberianum, D'Orb. ; Sowb., Thesaur. Con-
chy!. No. 150, fig. 285. C. crenulatum. Pfeif.
The animal does not appear to differ much from that of
the preceding species, and the shell at first glance appears to
be the same. But I think that, besides the double lip which
the latter possesses, a more careful examination will satisfy any
one that the sculpture is constantly different, being much
more coarse and irregular in the latter, the longitudinal lines
prevailing over the revolving ones, which is not the case in the
former. They are found in company.
One species of Succinea was collected, which closely re-
sembles S. ovalis, Say, and very possibly may be the same.
A few fresh-water shells were also obtained, amonc: which
were a small species of Limnea, resembling L. umbilicata,
Adams, and which I have also received from Santa Cruz ; one
species of Physa, and several species of Planorbis, of which I
think I have made out the following :
496 Desc?^ipliojis and Notices of
P. Havanensis, Pfeif. P. Cubensis, Pfeif. P. cultratus,
D'Orb. P. Lanieriana, D'Orb.
A fifth species is one of much interest ; inasmuch as its
throat is armed with teeth, very much Hke P. armigerus, Say.
The latter, Mr. Haldeman has proposed to consider as the
type of a new genus, (Discus). Should this claim be con-
firmed, another species may be added to the genus. It may
possibly be the species characterized by Pfeiffer under the
name of P. albicans,* but if so, he has failed to notice its most
interesting character, I therefore venture to propose for it the
name P. dentatus.
Planorbis dentatus, Gould. Plate 24, fig. 14.
Testa discoidea, soIidul&, pallide cornea, utroque umbilicata ; anfr. 3 leviter
striatis, supra et infra subcarinatis ; suturA profunda ; apertura sublunatS ;
labro intus callo albo incrassato ; fauce dentibus sex, abditis, armata.
Shell discoidal, rather solid, pale horn-colored, about equal-
ly umbilicated on both sides ; whorls three or a little more,
feebly striated and slightly carinated above and below ; aper-
ture embracing about half the penultimate whorl, rounded lu-
nate, the lip supported within by a rib-like, white callus; at a
distance of about one fourth of a volution within the throat are
six unequal, lamellar teeth, two on the inner, one on the up-
per, and three on the outer aspect of the throat ; their place
may be readily seen through the shell ; diameter, ^^ inch ;
height, ^V inch.
Found in a small lagoon at San Jorge.
If there is any one portion of the globe which would reward
conchological research more than another, I believe it to be
the West India Islands. Notwithstanding they have been so
long known and so much frequented by all nations, a very
small portion of the species, it is believed, have been collected,
and those few have been poorly described and badly figured ;
so that it is not easy to determine them. One reason for the
* p. orbiculari, utrinquc umbilicata, solidula, albicante vel pallide fulvicante;
anfr. 3 teretibus ; labro subincrassato, albo ; apertura subovata.
so7ne of the Land Shells of Cuba. 497
latter difficulty is, the species are so variable, that their limits
are almost conjectural. We have had examples of this,
among the few shells here noticed, in the large species of
Helicina and Pupa, and in Helix gilvus, Cubensis and penicil-
lata. Nothing but careful and extensive observation of the
shells with the animals and their distribution, in their actual
habitat, by competent naturalists, can remove this difficulty.
Were it now a suitable opportunity, some of the animals of
the marine species might also be here given. 1 cannot for-
bear, however to allude to one instance of confusion among
authors.
Deshayes remarks, in his edition of Lamarck, (vol. ix. p.
206) that he has completed the synonymy of Liitorina nodu-
losa, by uniting with it the Litt. tuberculata of Menke and
the Turbo trochiformis of Dillwyn ; and says that these three
names have been imposed upon the same species. But the
truth is, two shells, generically different, have been con-
founded by all authors which I have consulted, the one a
Trochus, and the other a Littorina, They live in company,
and their external appearance is so nearly alike, that they
would not be distinguished by a slight examination, though
the distinctive marks are unequivocal when once observed.
The one has a slightly developed columella, a thin lip, and a
multispiral operculum ; the other has a broad, somewhat ex-
cavated columella, and a subspiral operculum. The former is
figured by Wood as Turbo tuberculatus, and is evidently the
shell had in view by Deshayes, and is a Trochus. The latter
is a Littorina. D'Orbigny, in Sagra's Cuba, has figured both,
with the opercula even, under the genus Littorina, with dif-
ferent specific names, and has added still further to the con-
fusion by making a third species, Lit. dilatata, of superannuated
specimens of the Littorina with a remarkably flattened and
broad columella.
The Littorina is a more solid shell, lighter colored, and its
tubercles are whitish ; the aperture is somewhat produced into
a channel. The foot of the animal is oval, while that of the
56
498 Mbieralogical Notices.
Trochus is escutcheon-shapedj and its tentacles more delicate
and shorter.
The true synonymy then would be as follows ;
Trochus nodulosus, Gmel.
Littorina trochiformis, Dillw. ; Syn : Trochus tuberculatus,
Wood's Sup. ; Litt. tuberculata, Menke and Desh. ;
Litt. dilatata, D'Orb. (var.)
ART. XLII. — MINERALOGICAL NOTICES. By J. E. Teschemacher.
GLAUBERITE, brought from Tarapaca, Peru, by Mr. John H. Blake.
This mineral is found in small crystals, which are imbedded
in a beautiful, silky, fibrous borate of lime, published in
Alger's edition of Phillip's Mineralogy, under the name of
Hayesine.
This Glauberite was analyzed by A. A. Hayes, and found
to contain
Sulphuric acid, 57.220
Soda, 21.324
Lime, 20.680
Iron, .444
It is essentially a compound of sulphate of lime and sulphate
of soda. The first crystals I measured, the figure and meas-
urements of which are in the last edition of Dana's IMineral-
ogy, were extremely dull, so that I could only consider them
as approximative. Mr. Hayes afterwards sent me some
extremely brilliant crystals, the measurements of which coin-
cided exactly with those of the Glauberite, from Villa Rubia,
in Spain. The figure above named is that of th'6 first crystals
I found. Subsequently, others came to light, of very differ-
ent forms, produced by other modifications.
It is stated, in Dana, that, if crystals of Glauberite are left
in water, they will at length fall to pieces. This is probably
true. Those from Tarapaca, if treated carefully with cold
water, will permit nearly all the sulphate of soda to be dis-
Mineraloffical Notices. 499
o
solved out, leaving the form of the crystal unaltered, and the
edges as sharp as ever. Their appearance before the micro-
scope, after the loss of the sulphate of soda, is that of snowy-
white, fine granular sulphate of lime (alabaster). From 15
grains of this Glauberite, I have obtained 6^ grains anhydrous
sulphate of soda, and do not doubt that the whole quantity
might, with care, be extracted. If some forms of these ala-
baster crystals had been first found and analyzed, they would
have been pronounced to be pseudomorphous forms of an un-
known mineral, of which sulphate of lime had taken the place.
Now, if the action of the solvent powers of various chem-
ical solutions, as well as those of the gases which can be held
by water, be studied with care, the natural decomposition of
many minerals, as well as their replacement by other sub-
stances, in what are called pseudomorphous forms, will be
very much illustrated.
PYRRHITE.
Prof. J. W. Webster, of Harvard University, has lately re-
turned from the Azores, and brousrht with him some interestinor
minerals, several of which he has most kindly placed in my
hands ; amongst others, a beautiful Arragonite, at first sight
much resembling the Needlestone.
He also favored me with two small specimens of a feld-
spathic mineral, probably albite, on which were several
extremely minute but beautiful octohedral crystals, of a deep
orange to a wine-yellow color, the smallest transparent, the
largest translucent on edges.
At first, I considered this a new mineral, until, on com-
paring it with the account of Pyrrhile, in Jameson's Edin-
burgh Journal, vol. xxix., the resemblance struck me. I
therefore sacrificed these crystals to the blowpipe ; they gave
the followincr indications : —
The minutest transparent crystals changed immediately, in
the reducing flame, to a deep, dull indigo blue, perfectly dis-
tinct; the edges then rounded, and, after considerable ex-
posure, fused without intumescence ; on the application of
500 Mineralogical Notices.
borax, the fusion was immediate, and a small, transparent^
light brown bead remained. The largest crystal was then
exposed to the outer flame ; it became opake, of a light grey
color ; before the reducing flame, it changed apparently to
black ; but the blue color is clearly seen, in a strong light, on
the solid angles. Of this crystal, the edges alone could be
rounded by long exposure.
The hardness is about equal to felspar, and the form is that
of the regular octohedron. Although this form is unknown
among titanic minerals, the experiments of Kersten lead me
to suppose that it belongs to this family.
BUCHOLZITE and XENOLITE.
In April, 1S43, I read a paper before this Society, which
was published among their proceedings, in which I asserted
the identity of these two minerals. This has been confirmed
by Rammelsberg, in his Supplement, published July, 1843,
from a consideration of the similarity of their chemical con-
stituents. This question may therefore be considered as
settled ; but it is not probable that Rammelsberg had seen
the paper alluded to above.
On the singular Crystals of Galena, figured in Alger^s and
in Dana^s Mineralogy,
A good explanation of the formation of these singular
crystals may be given as follows : It is well known that a
liquid globule of phosphate of lead, on cooling, from the ac-
tion of the blowpipe, takes a polyhedral form, generally that
of a rhombic or pentagonal dodecahedron.
A microscopic examination of this cooling process shows
that, as the outer surface of the globule cools,'' the angles of
the planes appear to start out from the circumference, the
planes to flatten into their symmetrical shape ; the uncooled
liquid central portion pressed by the contraction of the cooling
exterior, oozes out from the middle of the plane, and spreads
in a thin, liquid plate, over part of the surface, taking nearly
the form of the plane ; contraction still continuing, a succes-
Miner alorrical Notices. 501
5
sion of thin plates ooze out, each, of course, spreading some-
what short of its predecessor, but retaining the same form.
This is probably the mode of the formation of these crystals
of Galena, all of which bear the appearance of having under-
gone fusion. On many crystals of Fluor spar, from England,
successive plates of this kind may be observed ; many of
them, however, do not take their origin from the centre of
the plane. If these, like those of phosphate of lead, are
formed by the sudden cooling of heated solutions, this may
easily be accounted for on the assumption that one side of
the crystal was attached near the source of heat ; the other
side cooling more rapidly, the liquid inside oozed out nearer
the more heated and still soft edge or plane. The crystals
of phosphate of lead, on the contrary, cool equally on all
sides. Forms of quartz, with these plates, are quite common ;
and I have recently found crystals of phosphate of lime, from
Grafton, New Hampshire, with the same appearance. These
plates have been considered as marks of cleavage lines ; and
it is evident that the cooling of each plate, previous to the
superimposition of a fresh one, would cause less strength of ad-
hesion between them than between other lines of the crystal.
PVROCHLORE. (Microlite.)
The close examination of above 200 crystals, of the min-
eral named Microlite by Prof. Shepard, and the comparison
of them with about 50 crystals of Pyrochlore from the Swed-
ish localities, and from the Ural Mountains, resulting in their
agreement in color, cleavage, crystalhne form and modifica-
tions, indicated to me, in 1841, the complete identity of the
two minerals, although Wohler's analysis had decreed the
latter to be a titanate, while Shepard's had made the former
a columbate of lime.
This identity, strenuously resisted by Prof. Shepard, al-
though on grounds which show a very superficial knowledge
of the whole subject, has been completely proved by subse-
quent analyses, particularly by that of A. A. Hayes, in Silli-
man's Journal, vol. xxxii. p. 341, and its station as a colum-
502 Mineralosrical Notices
T>
bate of lime, according to one of Shepard's analyses, con-
firmed. Dana's Mineralogy, one of the arrangements of
which is crystallographical, although in the last edition,
entering into every other possible detail on these two miner-
als, singularly enough omits even an allusion to the above
circumstance, notwithstanding its being so remarkable an in-
stance of the power of crystallography to indicate error in
chemical analysis, even in hands like those of Wohler.
This mineral is an excellent exemplification of the difficul-
ties which at present surround the natural arrangement of
minerals, although chemical analysis is, unquestionably, here-
after destined to be its basis. The analyses of the dark-
colored crystals give, as ingredients, columbic acid, lime,
manganese, iron, tin, lead, uranium, &c. ; whereas the mi-
nute transparent yellow crystals are probably pure columbate
of lime, or, perhaps, even obtaining their color from a slight
admixture of oxide of uranium, as this color diflfers much, in
intensity, in crystals of the same size. These small transpa-
rent crystals are generally modified on the edges and solid
angles of the octohedron ; in the large, dark-colored crystals,
these modifications are often nearly obliterated.
My largest crystal of Pyrochlore, from the Chesterfield
locality, is f of an inch at the base of the octohedral pyramid.
CoLUMBiTE is usually described as of a dark, opake, sub-
metallic, iron-black color. I possess a small crystal of this
substance, from Chesterfield, of a brilliant, transparent, dark
ruby red. I name this subject, because, as in the previous
instance of Pyrochlore, the small, transparent crystals of
minerals are usually most free from adulteration, and the
fittest to produce the true atomic formula on ^hemical analy-
sis. The excellent observations of Rammelsberg on this
whole subject are well worth the attention of all mineralogists.
PYROPHYLLITE and VERMICULTTE.
In the paper before alluded to, published in the proceedings
of this society, I have stated tlie probabiHty of the identity
of these two minerals.
Mineralo£rical Notices. 503
o
Vermiciilite is imbedded in a decomposed, magnesian,
probably steatitic mass, of a light mealy appearance ; from
this it is almost impossible completely to clear it. Thomp-
son, no doubt, therefore analyzed a considerable proportion of
this substance with his specimen of Vermiculite. Steatites
contain but a mere trace of alumina ; hence his analysis
would naturally "five much less of this inorredient than Herr-
man's of Pyrophyllite. Accordingly, we find, in Herrman,
29^ per cent alumina, in Thompson, only 1\ per cent. On
the other hand, steatite contains about 30 per cent, of mag-
nesia. And here the same coincidence takes place. Herr-
man finds only 4 per cent, magnesia, and Thompson 17 per
cent. They also differ about 5 per cent, in the quantity of
water. This is not surprising in a mineral whose singular
character in heat is supposed to arise from the mechanical
existence of water between the laminae, although I do not
consider it a fact by any means proved that it is water alone.
The ingredients of both analyses are the same, only differing
in quantity, except the iron, which, in one, is peroxide, in the
other protoxide. The difference in these two analyses, I con-
ceive far from being an objection to their identity. Among
the vermiculite, I have recently observed several laminae, of a
light apple-green color, resembling the original description of
Pyrophyllite by Herrman. Should future researches com-
pletely prove their identity, I believe Vermiculite was first
described. This name ought, therefore, properly to attach
to the mineral ; but this is a subject of very trivial im-
portance.
In the future progress of geology, when the lines and
directions of paroxysmal action are better understood, a strict
comparison of the inorganic ingredients of the elevated
mountains and crystalline intrusions arising from periodical
movements or convulsions of the central liquid mass, in places
distant from each other, will certainly become a subject of
considerable interest, and be invested with a character some-
what resembling that of the comparison of the organic ingre-
dients of sedimentary deposits ; nor is it impossible that such
504 Ajialysis of Pink Scapolite.
investigations may eventually elicit data of great innportance
in geology.
For the generalizations of some future master spirit on this
subject, the mineralogist of the present day is storing up facts
and materials ; and it is from this prospect that a discovery
of the identity of minerals from distant localities, and the
purification of mineralogy from the numerous supposed new
species with which the conceit or want of industry of its
votaries have loaded it, becomes an object of some interest.
ART. XLIll. — ANALYSIS OF PINK SCAPOLITE, AND OF CERIUM
OCHRE, FROM BOLTON, MASS. By Charles T. Jackson. Read
Jan. 3, 1844.
Pink Scapolite. This mineral occurs in abundance at
Whitcomb's lime quarry, near the junction of the white gran-
ular limestone with Gneiss Rock, at the top of the quarry.
It is crystallized and massive. The crystals are in reg-
ular right square prisms, with their lateral edges occasion-
ally replaced by planes, converting the crystal into an octago-
nal prism.
The crystallized specimens are generally of a lighter color
than the massive, and frequently are only colored on the sur-
face, presenting a translucent or transparent and glassy ap-
pearance in the interior.
Sp. Gr. 2.7138. Hardness 5.7 of Mohs scale. Color deli-
cate pink, or rose red, or pale lilac.
Before the blowpipe alone, fuses into a blebby enamel,
vitreous and white. ;
With soda, melts into glass.
With borax, melts into glass, light yellow while hot, but
colorless when cold.
With salt of phosphorus, dissolves, and the bead is yel-
lowish while hot, and colorless when cold. The analysis
was conducted on separate portions of the same piece ;
enty-five grains being taken for the determination of the
Analysis of Cerium Ochre. 505
silica, alumina, lime, magnesia, and cerium, while fifty grains
were operated upon for the alkalies. Each analysis was re-
peated on similar quantities. The water was determined by
heating one hundred grains of the coarse powder to dull red-
ness. In the analysis for the alkalies, the first process was
by fusion with carbonate of barytes, and then another por-
tion was decomposed by fluor spar and sulphuric acid. In
the other operations, the analytical processes of Berzelius and
Rose were followed. It will be unnecessary to detail them in
this paper.
Results of the Analysis reduced to per ceniage.
Cont's. Ratio.
45.940 — ox. = 23.865 = 4
13.469 " 2
Silicic acid,
45.940
Alumina,
28.840
Limey
14.811
Soda,
5.430
Lithia,
1.580
Potash,
0.640
Magnesia,
0.208
Oxide of cerium.
2.000
Water,
0.500
u
^=1
4.160
1.389
0.598
0.108
" 0.078
1.586
" 0.444
99.949
Formula 2A Si + (Ca Na Li) Si'.
The oxide of cerium, from its brown color after ignition, evi-
dently contains the oxide of lanthanium combined with it.
We have, as yet, no accurate process for their separation.
ANALYSIS OF CERIUM OCHRE.
The pink scapolite is frequently invested with a thin,
sulphur-yellow powder, resembling, in appearance, the native
oxide of molybdena. This I have analyzed, and find it to be
the hydrous oxide of cerium and yttria, containing minute
proportions of fluorine and uranium.
One grain of this powder, scraped from a specimen of the
scapolite, yielded
Ox. cerium, 0.2 gr.
Yttria, 0.1 gr.
.3
57
506 Analysis of Cerium Ochre.
This mineral has the following characters: —
Before the blowpipe alone, on charcoal, it turns brown,
but does not melt. With soda, it forms an opaque, greenish-
yellow bead, which becomes almost white by cooling. With
borax, it dissolves readily into a transparent glass, which is
orange red while hot, and nearly colorless or pale green when
cold. It retains this pale green color in Rfl.
With salt of phosphorus, dissolves into a glass, which is
orange red while hot, and pale green when cold. In Rfl. it
still retains this green color.
When the salt of phosphorus is saturated with this min-
eral, it becomes opaque when cold, and has a greenish tinge.
The mineral dissolves in warm hydrochloric acid, and
forms a lemon-yellow solution, from which crystallized sul-
phate of potash throws down a white powder, which is sul-
phate of cerium, yttria, and potash. The yttria being sep-
arated, and the cerium precipitated from its solution in hot
water by potash, and then heated to redness, becomes brown,
and has the usual characters of a mixture of the oxides of
cerium and lanthanium.
When the usual test is applied for the detection of fluorine,
a slight etching of the glass is discovered.
From the above researches, it appears that we have several
interesting combinations of cerium among the minerals of
Bolton. I long ago suspected that the pink color of the
petalite was due to the presence of cerium, having observed
that color surrounding the Allanite whicli occurs in it. The
circumstance that the pink scapolite does not become brown
or black by exposure to the action of the atmosphere, caused
me to suspect that its pink color was not due to the presence
of oxides of iron or manganese ; and the above remarks have
proved that the cerium ore is its coloring matter.
In effecting the above analyses, I have been assisted by my
pupil, Mr. Joseph S. Kendall, who has repeated every process
in the analysis.
INDEX.
AcHATiNA fasciata, Mull.
gracillima, Pfeif.
octona, Chem.
perdix, L.
solidula, Pfeif.
vexillnm. Bru°r.
489
489
894
421
489
489
Achirus mollis, Mitch. 183, 279
Achuauthes hrevipes 254
Acipenser maculosus, Lesueur 303
macrostomus, Raf. 303
Ohioensis, Raf. 303
Acipenser oxyrinchus, Mitch, 184, 287
rubicuudus, Lesueur 303
Actinia marg^inala, spicula in rays 252
Actinocyclus 253
Adams, C. B., descriptions of shells 37
Alasmodou arcuata, Barnes 325
marginata, Say 325
undulata, Say 325
Alger, F., identity of Beaumontite,
Lincolnite and Heulandite 422
Alosa communis 183
chrysocloris, Raf. 307
sapidissima 183
Maltowacca, Mitch. 275
menhaden, Mitch. 275
Ammodytes lancea, Cuv. 280
Amnicola lustrica 337
porata 337
Anatifa dentala, Wood. 311
ItEvis, Lin. 311
striata, Lin. 311
vilrea. Lam. 312
Ancylus rivularis. Say 337
Anguilla lutea, Raf. 234
laticauda, Raf. 235
Bostoniensis, Lesueur 279
vulgaris, Mitch. 279
Anodon cataracla, Say 325
implicala, Say 325
marginata, Say 325
Anomia aculeata, Gmel. 328
ephippium, Lister 328
Araneides, descriptions of 54, 356
Area glacialis, Migh. 322
Arion hortensis, Fer. 170
Astarte castanea. Say 319
laclea, Sowb. 319
Portlandica. Migh. 320, 345
quadrans, Gould 319
Astarte undata, Gould 319
Atherina Boscii, Cuv. ' 262
notata, Mitch. 262
Atypus, Latr. 223
Atypus ni<?er, Hentz 224
Ayres,W.O.,fishes of Brookhaven 255,293
Bachman, J., on genus Scalops 26
Bacillaria of Boston Harbor 253
Bailey, J. W., spicula in Actinea, &,c. 242
Baione fontinalis, Dekay 273
Balanus eburneus, Gould 310
elongatus, Lin. 311
geniculatus, Conr. 310
ovularis, Lam. 310
rugosus, Donov. 310
tintinnabulum, Lin. 311
Bartlett, J., notices of shells of Cuba 4S5
Basse, striped 257
rock • 239
goggle-eyed 239
Batrachus varie'gatus, Lesueur 262
Beaumontite, identity vriih Heulandite422
Belone truncata, Lesueur 272
Binney A., two new Helices 360
new Helix 241
on Limacidae of U. States 1 63
Black-fish 263
Blue-fish 261
Bones, fossil, from Oregon 134
Brit 275
Buccinum ciliatum, Fabr. 343
Donovani, Gray 343
obsoletum. Say 343
plicosum, xMenke 343
rosaceum, Gould 343
trivittatum, Say 343
undatum, Lin. 343
Bucholzite
Bulimus atricallosus, Gould,
lubricus. Mull. ^
ovatus, anatomy of
Bullhead
Bulla debilis, Gould
Gouldii, Couth,
lineolata, Couth,
occulta, Migh.
oryza, Totten
perlenuis, Migh.
puncto-slriala, Migh.
500
457
334
421
272
331
331
331
54
332
332, 346
508
Index.
Bulla triticea, Couth.
Burgall
Cabot, S., birds of Yucatan
on the ocellated Turkey,
Calyptraea striata, Say
Cancellaria Couthouyi, Jay
Caracolla anceps, Gould
retrorsa, Gould
Carcharias griseus, Ayres 288,
Cardita borealis, (Jonr.
Cardium Groenlandicum, Chem.
Islandicum, Lin.
piunulatum, Conr.
Cemoria princeps, Migh. 42,
Centrarchus aeneus, Cuv.
Ceratoneis closterium
fasciola
Cerium ochre, analysis of
Chatoessus ellipticus, Kirtl.
Chibeloupe
Chimpanzee
Chiton albus, Mont.
Emersonii, Couth.
fulminatus, Couth.
IcEvigatus, Flem.
mendicarius, Migh. 42,
noachina, Mont.
ruber, Lowe
Cingula aculeus, Gould
, arenaria, Mont. 49,
latior, Migh. 48,
minnta, Totten
semicostata, Mont. 49,
Clausilia insignis, Gould
Clupea minima, Peck
Cocconeis scutellum *
Cochlodesma Leana, Conr.
Columbella avara. Say
Coral Formations, Couthouy on
Coregonus Artedi, Lesueur
Corvus vociferus, Cabot
Coryphaena perciformis, Mitch.
Coscinodiscus radiatus
Cottus variabilis, Ayres
Couthouy, J. P., on coral formations
Crenilabrus burgall, Schosp.
Crepidula fornicata, Lin.
plana, Say
Cryptacanthodes, Storer
Ctenus hybernalis, Hentz
punclulatus, Hentz
Cybium maculatum, Mitch. 261,
Cychla senea, Lesueur
Cyclas calyculata, Drap.
minor, Adams
nitida, Migh.
partumeia. Say
similis. Say
Cyclostoma Auberianum, D'Orb.
auriculatum, D'Orb.
bicolor, Gould
Candeanum, D'Orb.
catenatum, Gould
clathratum, Gould
crenulatum, Pfeif.
interruptum, Sowb.
mahogani, Gould
39
39
331
263
460
246
331
341
454
455
293
322
321
321
321
330
239
253
253
505
235
461
36 3
329
329
329
329
329
329
329
340
340
340
340
340
458
275
254
315
344
66
231
464
181
253
259
66
263
331
331
178
393
394
179
239
319
319
319
313
318
495
494
494
495
494
495
495
494
494
Cyclostoma marginatum, Say
pernobilis, Gould
pictum, Pfeif.
rugulosum, Pfeif.
Sagra, D'Orb.
sectilabrum, Gould
Cylindrella
Cyprina Islandica, Lin.
Cytherea convexa. Say
Delph inula coarctata, Migh.
Dentalium dentale, Lin.
entalis, Lin.
Dicronorhina, H^pe
Diodon maculo-striatus, Mjpch.
Dog Fish
Dolomedes hastulatus, Hentz
tenax, Hentz
tenebrosus, Hentz
Dorosoma notata, Raf.
Dromedarj^, dissection of
Drum Fish
Dysdera interrita, Hentz
Echeneis alba-cauda, Mitch.
naucrates
Echinella flabellata
Eel, yellow
Eel-pout
Emersonia, Bailey
antiqua
elegans
Esox ovinus, Mitch,
pisculus, Mitch,
reticulatus, Lesueur
zonatus, Mitch.
Etheostoma Olmstedi, Storer
Falco percontator, Cabot
Fall-fish
Fasciolaria ligata, Migh.
Filistata capitata, Hentz
hibernalis, Hentz
Fishes of Brookhaven
of Massachusetts
of Ohio 16,
Storer's descriptions
Fishing-frog
Fistularia serrata, Bloch
Flat-fish
Flounder, s^
sand
Fragillaria
Fundulus fuscus, Aj-res
viridescens, Dekay
zebra, Dekay
Fusus Bamffius, Flem.
cancellatus, Migh.
decemcostatus, Say
harpularius, Couth.
Islandicus, Penn.
pygmaeus, Gould
rufus, Mont.
scalariformis, Gould
tornatus, Gould
turriculus, Mont.
Gadus maculosus, Lesueur
357
458
494
495
494
459
490
320
320
349
330
330
401
284
288
395
395
396
235
I
260
224
183
183
254
234
24
254
254
254
264
266
269, 233
267, 269
61,257
462
306
51,341
228
227
255, 293
175
231, 303
58
262
182
276
279
277
253
296
' 268
268
342
52, 342
341
342
341
341
342
342
342
342
24
263
Index.
609
Gaillouella moniliformis 253
sulcata 253
Galena, singular crystals 500
Garfish 272
alligator 18
duckbill 20
Ohio 16
Gasterosteus millepunctatus 259, 294
noveboracensis, Cuv. 259
Glandina foUiculus, Lam. 4S9
oleacea, Fer. 4S9
truucata, Say 416
Glauberile 498
Glycymeris siliqua, Chem. 314
Goliathi, remarks on 404, 398
Gomphonema clavaium 254
Gould, A. A., notices of shells from
Cuba 435
shells from Tavoy 452
monograph of Pupa 350
Greenback 275
Haldeman S. S., freshwater MoUusca
common to Europe and IN'orth
America, &c. 468
Hall, J., geology of j^iagara Falls 106
Harris, T. W. African Beetles, 397
Hayes, Jno. L., influence of icebergs
on drift 426
Hayesine 498
Hegemon, Harris 399
Relicina adspersa, Pfeif. 493
glabra, Gould 493
globulosa, D'Orb. 493
hispida, Pfeif. 493
nitida, Pfeif. 493
pulcherrima, Lea 492
rugosa, Pfeif. 493
rupestris, Pfeif. 493
sagra, DOrb. 492
submarginata, Gray 492
variegata, D'Orb. 493
Helix albolabris, Say 332
alternata, Say 333
arborea, Say 333
auricoma, Fer. 486
Bonplandii, Lam. 486
Boothiana, Pfeif. 488
chersina, Say 333
circumlexta, Fer. 487
Cubensis, Pfeif. 487
demissa, Binney 361
electrina, Gould 333
fragilis, Pfeif. AS%
fraterna. Say 333
gabata, Gould 454
gilvus, Fer. 487
hortensis, Lin. 332
indentata, Say 333
infreudens, Gould 453
labyrinthica, Say 333
Lanieriana, D'Orb. 487
lineata. Say 333
mullistriata, Desh. 487
Ottonis, Pfeif. 488
penicillata, Gould 487
procumbens, Gould 453
Poeyii, Petit 487
Helix pulchella. Mull.
Ramonis, D'Orb.
saxicola, Pfeif.
Sayi, Binney
seplemvolva, Say
striatella, Anthony
subplana, Binney
thyroidus, Say
tufliculata, Binney
Hentz, N. M., Araneides 54,
Herring, gold
Hipponix
Horn-fish
Horned pout
Hydrargira fasciata, Schn.
flavula, Mitch,
pisculenta, Mitch.
Icebergs, influence on drift
333
488
488
333
488
333
241
332
360
223, 386
307
331
237
272
266
267
267
426
Jackson, J. B. S., dissection of drome-
dary 1
Jackson, C. T., analysis of scapolite
and cerium ochre 504
King-fish 259
Kirtland, J. P., fishes of Ohio 16, 231 , 303
Labrax lineatus, Cuv. 257
mucronatus, Cuv. 257
Labrus Americanus. Bloch 263
Lacuna neritoidea, Gould 340
vincta, Mont. 340
Lebias ellipsoides, Lesueur 264, 265
Lepisosteus ferox, Raf. 18
Huronensis, Rich. 16
oxj-urus, Raf. ' 16
platystomus, Raf. 20
Leuciscus chrysoleucas, Milch. 263, 305
compressus, Raf. 306
cornutus, Mitch. 182
nasutus, Ayres 299
Limacidae of U. States 163
Limax agrestis, Lin. 166
campestris, Binney ' 169
Carolinensis, Bosc 171
flavus, Lin. 164
hortensis, Lin. 170
togata, Gould 171
tunicata, Gould 169
variegatus, Drap. 164
Limnea ampla, Migh. 337, 347
columella, Say 336
desidiosa, Say 336
decollata, Migh. 45, 336
elodes, Say 463
humilis, Say 336
jugularis, Say 468
palustris, Mull. 468
stagnalis, L. 463
truncatulus, ^Inll. 468
umbilicata, Adams 495
Lincolnite, identity with Heulandite 422
Litlorina dilatata,'DOrb. 497
nodulosa, Gniel. 497
palliata, Say 339
rudis, Donov. 339
lenebrosa, Mont. 339
510
Index.
Littorina tuberculata, Menke
Lophius piscatorius, Liu,
Loia brosmiana, Storer
maculosa, Lesueur
Lucina flexuosa, Moul.
radula, Mout.
Lucioperca Americana, Cuv.
Luxilus erylhrogaster, Raf.
Lycosa aspersa, Heniz
Caroliuensis, Heatz
erratica, Henlz
faiifera, Hentz
funerea, Hentz
lenta
litoralis
maritima
milvina
ocreata
punclulata
riparia
ruricola
sagitiata
497
262
58
24
318
318
237
23
339
230
33S
229
393
336
388
339
392
391
390
339
387
391
387
392
390
392
313
313
261
179, 261
179
315
316
316
saltatrix
saxalilis
scutellala
venustula
JMachaera costata, Say
nilida, Gould
Mackerel, horse
• Spanish
spotted
Mactra giganlea, Lam.
graiidis, Desh.
ovalis, Gould
McCulloch, T., on habit, as a guide in
systematic arrangement 406
Margarita acuminata, Sowb. 46, 339
arctica, Leach 339
argentata, Gould 339
cinerea, Couth. 339
minutissima, Migh. 345
obscura, Couth. 339
undulata, Sowb. 339
varicosa, Migh. 46
Mecynorhina, Hope 401
Pohphemus 402
Savagii, Harris 403
torquata, Drury 401, 404
Mcleagris ocellata, Cuv. 246
Merlucius vulgaris, Cuv. 276
Mesodesma arctata, Conr. 316
Jauresii, De Joannis 316
Micro! ite 501
]\Iighels, J. W., new shells 37, 345
catalogue of shells of
Maine 308
Mineralogical notices 498
Modiola discrepans 327
glandula 327
modiolus 326
nexa 326
pectinula 326
plicaiula 326
Morrhua pruinosa, Mitch. 276
Morton S. G., aborigines of America 190
Mugil lineatus, Milch. 265
Mustelus canis, Mitch. 288 |
Mya arenaria, Lin. 314
truncata, Lin. 314
Mygale Caroliuensis, Hentz 56
gracilis, Hentz 56
solstitialis, Hentz 56
truncata, Hentz 56
unicolor, Hentz 57
Myliobatis 137
bispinosus, Storer 188, 290
Mytilus edulis, Lin. 326
pellucidus, Penn. 326
Namaycush 25
Natica clausa, Brod. 338
consolidata, Couth. 338
flava, Gould 338
heros, Say 337
immaculata, Totten 338
pusilla, Say 338
triseriata. Say 333
Naunema 254
Navicula viridis 253
JXucula antiqua, Migh. 53, 324
delphiuodonla, Migh. 40, 324
Cascoensis, Migh, 40, 324
Jacksonii, Gould 323
limatula. Say 322
minuta, Gmel. 323
myalis, Couth. 323
navicularis, Couth. 323
proxima. Say 323
rostrata, Mont. 323
sapolilla, Gould 323
tenuis, Mont. 323
thracioeformis, Storer 323
Oletera, Walck, 223
Orthagoriscus mola 189
Ortyx nigrogularis, Gould 460
Orycterotherium Oregonense 135
Missouriense, Harl. 135
Osteodesma hyalina, Conr. 315
Ostrea borealis, Lam. 327
Otolithus regalis, Cuv. 259
Ourang, black
Paddle-fish
Pagrus argvrops, Lin.
PalinuruSj t)ekay
Paludiua achatina
decisa, Say
faiciata
vivipara L.
Pandora trilineata, Say
Panopaea arctica, Lam.
Patella alveus, Conr.
amoena, Say
Candida, Couth.
Pecten Islandicus, Mull.
Magellanicus, Gmel.
tenuicostatus, Migh.
Pelamys sarda,
Peprilus triacanthus, Peck
Perca flavescens, Mitch,
granulata, Cuv.
nigro-punctata, Raf.
salmonea, Raf.
Perch, yellow
363, 377
21
260
181
468
337
468
480
314
313
330
330
330
327
327
41, 327
178, 292
181, 262
176, 256
176
237
237
256
Index,
511
Perkins, H. C, on fossil bones from
Oregon 134
PetricoJa pholadiformis, Lam. 317
Phasianella sulcosa, Migh. 348
Philomycus Carolinensis, Fer. 171
dorsalis, Binney 174
Pholas crispala, Lin. 312
Phycis Americanus, Schn. 276
Physa ancillaria, Say 335
elongata, Say 336, 468
fragilis, Migh. 44, 336
g}Tina, Say 336
heterostropha, Say 335
hypnorum, Drap. 336, 468, 480
Pickerel 233, 237
Pisrmy 363
Pike 233, 237
Pilot-fish _ 181
Pimelodus catus, Lin.
nebulosus, Lesueur
Pisidium appendix. Leach
amnicum
Mull.
Planorbis albicans, Pfeif.
albus, Mull,
armigerus, Say
bicarinatus, Say
campanulalus. Say
Cubensis, Pfeif.
cultratus, D'Orb.
deflectus, Say
dentatus, Gotll
elevatus, Adams
exacutus, Say
Havanensis, Pfeif.
Lanieriana, D'Orb.
lenlus. Say
nitidus, Mull,
parvus, Say
trivolvis, Say
Platessa plana, Mitch.
Pleuronectes aquosus, Mitch.
maculatus, Mitch.
Pleurotoma bicarinata, Couth.
decussala, Ad. and Migh.
violacea, JMigh. and Ad
341.
Pogonias gi?as. Mitch.
Polyodon folium, Lacep.
Pomolobus chrysochloris, Raf.
Pomotis, red-tailed
ruhricauda, Storer
vulgaris, Cuv.
Porgee
Prionotus Carolinus, Cuv.
strigatus, Cuv.
Pupa armifera. Say
badia, Adams
carinata, Gould
chr^•salis, Fer.
contracta, Say
corticaria, Say
crispula, Pfeif.
curvidens, Gould
elegans, Pfeif.
exigua. Say
fallax, Say
Gouldii, Binney
272
272
468
463
496
468
335
335
335
496
496
335
496
335
335
496
496
335
468
335
335
276
278
277
341
341
, 51
260
21
292
177
177
258
260
258
258
359
360
359
490
359
358
492
334, 354
490
334, 358
357
352
178,
334,
Pupa lactaria, Gould
lyrata, Gould
milium, Gould
modesta, Say
ovata, Say
penlodon, Say
porrecta, Gould
procera, Gould
rupicola. Say
servilis, Gould
simplex, Gould
sub u la, Pfeif.
Tappaniana, Adams
unicarinata, Lam.
Purpura lapillus, Lin,
Pyramis striatula, Couth.
Python JNatalensis, Smith
Pylarus bicolor, Hentz
pumilus, Hentz.
Pyrrhite
Pyrochlore
Pyrophyllite
491
pi. 16, fig. 16
359
490, 334, 351
350
353
490
359
355
490, 356
359
492
354
490
343
340
242
225
226
499
501
502
Rafllesia Arnold! 65
Manilana, Teschm. 63
Patma, Hooker 65
Kaia centroura, Mitch. 187, 289
diaphanes, Mitch. 289
quadriloba, Lesueur 187
Rhombus aquosus, Storer 278
Rostellaria occidentalis. Beck 342
Rudder-fish 181
Rutilus compressus, Raf. 306
Salmo amethystus, Mitch.
fontinalis, Mitch. 272,
namaycush, Penn.
nigrescens, Raf.
Sand-lance
Sanguinolaria fusca. Say
Sargus ovis, Mitch.
Savage, T. S.,on Python Natalensis
Troglodytes niger 377,
Sax'icava distorta, Lin.
Scalaria Groenlandica, Cbem.
Scalops aquaticus, Lin.
Breweri, Bach.
Canadensis, Rich,
laiimanus, Bach.
Pennsylvanica. Harl.
Townsendi, Bach.
Scapolite, analysis of
Scarabaeus Polyphemus. Fabr. 397,
Scolopsides Sayanus, Gilliams
Scomber vernalis, Mitch.
Scopelus Humboldtii, Cuv.
Shad, gold
hickory
Sharks
hammer-headed
long-toothed
Sheeps-head 131
Shells of Cuba
of Maine
from Tavoy
new species 37,
Shiner, gold
25
305
25
305
230
317
260
242
362
316
338
23
32
31
34
28
31
504
401
260
260
274
307
235
2S7
185
189
260
4S5
308
452
345
305
512
Index.
Shiner, red-belly
Shrew-mole, Brewer's
broad -palmed
common
Townsend's
Sigaretus haliotoideus, Lin.
Siliceous animalcules, of Boston
Silvery hair-tail
Simia troglodytes
Siphonostoma crispula, Pfeif.
elegans, Pfeif.
lactaria, Gould
lituus, Gould
porrecta, Gould
subula, Fer.
Skenea serpuloides, Mont.
Skip-Jack
Slugs of United States
Solea
yolecurtus caribaeus, Chemn.
Solemya borealis, Totten
velum, Say
Solen ensis, Lin.
Spatularia reticulata, Shaw
Spinax acanthias, Lin.
Squalus fuscus
macrodon, Mitch.
Stickleback, New York
Sting-Ray, smooth-tailed
rough-tailed
Storer, D. H., new fishes
Massachusetts fishes
Streptaxis Petitii, Gould
Sturgeon, spoonbill
lake
Succinea avara, Say
campestris, Say
ovalis. Say
Sun-fish, black
Swell-fish
Sylvia petechia, Wils.
Syngnathus Feckianus, Storer
viridescens, Dekay
23
32
34
28
31
338
252
181
362
492
490
491
490
490
492
338
307
163
183
312
313
313
312
21
288
189
259
290
289
58
456
21
303
334
334
334, 4P5
239
285
406
282
284
Talpa fusca, Penn. 28
Tebennophorus, Binney 164
Carolincnsis, Bosc 171
410.
Tellina sordida, Couth. 317
Temnodon saltator, Cuv. 261'
Terebra dislocala, Say 344
Terebratula caput-serpentis, Lin. 329
psittacea, Gm. 329
Teschemacher, J. E., new Rafflesia 63
phosphate of uranium
in tourmaline 35
Teschemacher, J. E., mineralogical
notices 499
Tetraodon mathematicus, Mitch. 183
turgidus, Mitch. 285
Thracia truncata, Migh. 38, 315
Conradi, Couth. 315
Toad-fish 262
Tomcod 276
Trachinotus argenteus, Cuv. 180
Cumberlandi, Cozzens 181
Trichiurus argenteus, Shaw 181
lepturus, Lin. 181
Trichotropis borealis, Sowb. 342
costellatus. Couth. 342
Trochus nodulosus, Gmel. 498
Trochus occidentalis, Migh. 47, 339
Troglodytes niger 362, 377
Trout 272
common brook 305
great lake 25
Trygon bispinosus, Storer 188
Turbo trochiformis, Dillw. 497
tuberculatus, Wood 497
Turkey, ocellated 246
Turritella costulata, Migh. 60, 340
reticulata, Migh. 50, 340
erosa. Couth. 340
Umbrina nebulosa, 178, 259
Unio complanatus, Soiand. 324
ochraceus, Say 324
radiatus, Gmel. 324
Uranium, phosphate of 35
Valvata pupoidea, Gould 337
Velutina levigata, Lin. 338
zonata, Gould 333
Venus fluctuosa, Gould 321
gemma, Totten 321
mercenaria, Lin. 320
notala. Say 320
Vermiculite 502
Vitrina prjEstans, Gould 456
Vomer setapennis, Mitch. 262
Weak-fish 259
Wyman, J., organization of Troglo-
dytes niger 362, 377
anatomy of Tebennopho-
rus Carolinensis 410
anatomy of Glandina
truncata 416
Xenolite
Zygaena malleus, Valenc.
500
185
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